2026 Premier League Darts (known for sponsorship reasons as the 2026 BetMGM Premier League)[1] is an upcoming professional darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). The 22nd edition of Premier League Darts, the event will begin on Thursday 5 February 2026 at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle and will end with the play-offs at the O2 Arena in London on Thursday 28 May 2026. The total prize fund will be £1,250,000, with the overall winner receiving £350,000 and each weekly winner receiving a £10,000 bonus.
The eight-player tournament will begin with a 16-week league stage. Following the league stage, the top four players will compete in the play-offs. The 2026 edition will mark the introduction of Belgium to the schedule, with a night in Antwerp being included for the first time. Gian van Veen and Josh Rock are making their Premier League debuts. Luke Humphries is the defending champion, having defeated Luke Littler 11–8 in the 2025 final.
Overview
Background
2026 Premier League Darts is the 22nd edition of the tournament to be staged by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) since the inaugural event in 2005.[2] The inaugural event was played in venues across the United Kingdom and was won by Phil Taylor, who defeated Colin Lloyd 16–4 in the final.[3][4] Taylor won six of the first eight editions of the tournament, only being stopped by James Wade in 2009 and Gary Anderson in 2011.[5] The amount of participants in the event has varied overtime. Originally consisting of seven players, a wildcard spot was introduced for the 2007 edition to bring the total to eight.[6][7] The number increased to ten ahead of the 2013 edition,[8] before reverting back to eight players in 2022.[9] The tournament has expanded outside of the United Kingdom, with nights held in Germany, the Netherlands and Ireland, as well as Belgium from 2026 onward.[1][4]
The 2026 Premier League will take place from 5 February to 28 May 2026.[10] Sportsbook BetMGM continued its sponsorship of the event after becoming title sponsor in 2024.[11]Luke Humphries will enter the tournament as defending champion after defeating Luke Littler 11–8 in the 2025 final to win his first Premier League title.[12][13]
Format
The 2026 Premier League will use the same format that was introduced for the 2022 edition.[14] It remains an eight-person knockout bracket every Thursday night. The players are guaranteed to meet each other once in the quarter-finals throughout the first seven weeks, and once in the quarter-finals in weeks 9–15, with weeks 8 and 16 being drawn based on the league standings at that point. Players receive two points per semi-final finish, three points per runner-up finish, and five points per final win. Following the league phase, the top four players in the table contest the two play-off semi-finals with 1st playing 4th and 2nd playing 3rd, where the winners progress to the Premier League final.[15]
All matches are played in leg format, with the number of legs required to win increasing as the tournament progresses:
League stage: Best of 11 legs
Semi-finals: Best of 19 legs
Final: Best of 21 legs
Prize money
As part of the PDC's biggest prize money increase in its history, the prize fund for the 2026 Premier League is £1,250,000, up from £1,000,000 the previous year. The champion will receive £350,000 and each night's winner during the league phase will earn a £10,000 bonus.[16]
Stage
Prize money
Winner
£350,000
Runner-up
£170,000
Semi-finalists (x2)
£110,000
5th place
£95,000
6th place
£90,000
7th place
£85,000
8th place
£80,000
Weekly winner bonus (x16)
£10,000
Total
£1,250,000
Venues
The 2026 Premier League will consist of 17 nights, held in cities across the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. The 2026 edition will mark the introduction of Belgium to the schedule, with a night at the AFAS Dome in Antwerp replacing the Westpoint Arena in Exeter.[10]
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Newcastle 
Antwerp 
Glasgow 
Belfast 
Cardiff 
Dublin 
Berlin 
Rotterdam 
