[[Marshall Arena]](2020)"},"country":{"wt":"[[England]]"},"founded":{"wt":"1994"},"inaugural":{"wt":"[[1994 World Matchplay|1994]] "},"tournament_format":{"wt":"Legs"},"champion":{"wt":"{{flagicon|ENG}}[[Luke Humphries]]"},"champ_season":{"wt":"[[2024 World Matchplay |2024]]"}},"i":0}}]}" id="mwDQ">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}
Founded | 1994 |
---|---|
First season | 1994 |
Country | England |
Venue(s) | Winter Gardens (1994–2019, 2021–) Marshall Arena (2020) |
Most recent champion(s) | Luke Humphries (2024) |
Tournament format | Legs |
The World Matchplay, also known as the Betfred World Matchplay for sponsorship purposes, [1] is a professional darts tournament and one of three legs of the Triple Crown. It is played in a legs format, and is run by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Luke Humphries is the current champion after winning the 2024 edition.
The World Matchplay has been played annually since 1994 in the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool. The first ever winner was Larry Butler, who beat Dennis Priestley 16–12, and the current holder is Luke Humphries.
The 1995 World Matchplay turned out to be Jocky Wilson's last appearance in a major televised event. Wilson had reached the quarter-finals of the inaugural tournament in 1994 and he beat Rod Harrington in the 1st round in 1995, but a 2nd round defeat against Nigel Justice was effectively the end of his career.
From 1994 to 2012, matches at the World Matchplay had to be won by two clear legs. For example, the first round was usually played over the first to 10 legs, but if the score reached 9–9, play continued until either player gained a two-leg lead. Starting with the 2013 World Matchplay, if a two leg-lead hadn't been established after six extra legs, then a sudden death leg is played, so sudden death would come into play in a first round match at 12–12. [2]
Over the course of the tournament's 31-year existence, there have been thirteen different winners: Phil Taylor (16), Michael van Gerwen (3), Rod Harrington (2), Gary Anderson (1), Nathan Aspinall (1), Larry Butler (1), Rob Cross (1), Peter Evison (1), Luke Humphries (1), Colin Lloyd (1), Dimitri Van den Bergh (1), James Wade (1) and Peter Wright (1). Dennis Priestley was also runner-up for three consecutive years.
From 2018 onwards, the World Matchplay champion will receive the Phil Taylor Trophy, as was announced by the PDC following the retirement of the sixteen-time winner of the tournament. [3]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, the 2020 World Matchplay was held at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes, behind closed doors. [4]
Year | Champion (average in final) | Score | Runner-up (average in final) | Prize money | Sponsor | Venue | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | Champion | Runner-up | ||||||
1994 | Larry Butler (92.70) | 16–12 | Dennis Priestley (91.59) | £42,400 | £10,000 | £6,000 | Proton Cars | Winter Gardens, Blackpool |
1995 | Phil Taylor (90.72) | 16–11 | Dennis Priestley (87.63) | Webster's | ||||
1996 | Peter Evison (100.51) | 16–14 | Dennis Priestley (96.67) | £46,000 | £12,000 | £7,000 | ||
1997 | Phil Taylor (106.32) | 16–11 | Alan Warriner (98.42) | £6,000 | ||||
1998 | Rod Harrington (95.03) | 19–17 | Ronnie Baxter (94.07) | £58,000 | £14,000 | £7,000 | PDC | |
1999 | Rod Harrington (85.95) | 19–17 | Peter Manley (86.91) | |||||
2000 | Phil Taylor (100.32) | 18–12 | Alan Warriner (97.14) | Stan James | ||||
2001 | Phil Taylor (99.57) | 18–10 | Richie Burnett (90.99) | £65,000 | ||||
2002 | Phil Taylor (98.76) | 18–16 | John Part (94.14) | £75,500 | £15,000 | £7,500 | ||
2003 | Phil Taylor (94.38) | 18–12 | Wayne Mardle (97.44) | £80,000 | £8,000 | |||
2004 | Phil Taylor (100.20) | 18–8 | Mark Dudbridge (89.24) | £100,000 | £20,000 | £10,000 | ||
2005 | Colin Lloyd (97.89) | 18–12 | John Part (94.53) | £120,000 | £25,000 | £12,500 | ||
2006 | Phil Taylor (100.08) | 18–11 | James Wade (90.01) | £150,000 | £30,000 | £15,000 | ||
2007 | James Wade (96.83) | 18–7 | Terry Jenkins (91.62) | £200,000 | £50,000 | £20,000 | ||
2008 | Phil Taylor (109.47) | 18–9 | James Wade (102.58) | £300,000 | £60,000 | £30,000 | ||
2009 | Phil Taylor (106.05) | 18–4 | Terry Jenkins (92.32) | £400,000 | £100,000 | £50,000 | ||
2010 | Phil Taylor (105.16) | 18–12 | Raymond van Barneveld (100.11) | |||||
2011 | Phil Taylor (103.84) | 18–8 | James Wade (98.84) | Sky Bet | ||||
2012 | Phil Taylor (98.97) | 18–15 | James Wade (95.92) | Betfair | ||||
2013 | Phil Taylor (111.23) | 18–13 | Adrian Lewis (105.92) | BetVictor | ||||
2014 | Phil Taylor (107.19) | 18–9 | Michael van Gerwen (101.49) | £450,000 | ||||
2015 | Michael van Gerwen (99.91) | 18–12 | James Wade (90.37) | |||||
2016 | Michael van Gerwen (103.93) | 18–10 | Phil Taylor (101.13) | |||||
2017 | Phil Taylor (104.24) | 18–8 | Peter Wright (99.74) | £500,000 | £115,000 | £55,000 | ||
2018 | Gary Anderson (101.12) | 21–19 | Mensur Suljović (104.43) | |||||
2019 | Rob Cross (95.16) | 18–13 | Michael Smith (95.91) | £700,000 | £150,000 | £70,000 | Betfred | |
2020 | Dimitri Van den Bergh (98.31) | 18–10 | Gary Anderson (92.81) | Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes | ||||
2021 | Peter Wright (105.90) | 18–9 | Dimitri Van den Bergh (100.88) | Winter Gardens, Blackpool | ||||
2022 | Michael van Gerwen (101.19) | 18–14 | Gerwyn Price (96.92) | £800,000 | £200,000 | £100,000 | ||
2023 | Nathan Aspinall (96.21) | 18–6 | Jonny Clayton (93.56) | |||||
2024 | Luke Humphries (100.94) | 18–15 | Michael van Gerwen (98.74) |
Rank | Player | Nationality | Won | Runner-up | Finals | Appearances |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Phil Taylor | England | 16 | 1 | 17 | 24 |
2 | Michael van Gerwen | Netherlands | 3 | 2 | 5 | 16 |
3 | Rod Harrington | England | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 |
4 | James Wade | England | 1 | 5 | 6 | 18 |
5 | Gary Anderson | Scotland | 1 | 1 | 2 | 15 |
Peter Wright | Scotland | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | |
Dimitri Van den Bergh | Belgium | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | |
8 | Larry Butler | United States | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
Peter Evison | England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
Colin Lloyd | England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 15 | |
Rob Cross | England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
Nathan Aspinall | England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | |
Luke Humphries | England | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
13 | Dennis Priestley | England | 0 | 3 | 3 | 17 |
14 | Alan Warriner | England | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 |
John Part | Canada | 0 | 2 | 2 | 15 | |
Terry Jenkins | England | 0 | 2 | 2 | 13 | |
17 | Ronnie Baxter | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 |
Peter Manley | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 13 | |
Richie Burnett | Wales | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |
Wayne Mardle | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
Mark Dudbridge | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
Raymond van Barneveld | Netherlands | 0 | 1 | 1 | 14 | |
Adrian Lewis | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | |
Mensur Suljović | Austria | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
Michael Smith | England | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 | |
Gerwyn Price | Wales | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
Jonny Clayton | Wales | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
Country | Players | Total | First title | Last title |
---|---|---|---|---|
England | 8 | 24 | 1995 | 2024 |
Netherlands | 1 | 3 | 2015 | 2022 |
USA | 1 | 1 | 1994 | 1994 |
Scotland | 2 | 2 | 2018 | 2021 |
Belgium | 1 | 1 | 2020 | 2020 |
Nine nine-dart finishes have been thrown at the World Matchplay. The first one was in 2002, when Phil Taylor hit the first live 9-darter in UK television history.
Player | Year (+ Round) | Method | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
Phil Taylor | 2002, Quarter-Finals | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | Chris Mason | Won |
Raymond van Barneveld | 2010, 1st Round | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | Denis Ovens | Won |
John Part | 2011, 1st Round | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | Mark Webster | Lost |
Michael van Gerwen | 2012, 2nd Round | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | Steve Beaton | Won |
Wes Newton | 2012, 2nd Round | 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12 | Justin Pipe | Lost |
Phil Taylor | 2014, 2nd Round | 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12 | Michael Smith | Won |
Gary Anderson | 2018, Quarter-Finals | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | Joe Cullen | Won |
Gerwyn Price | 2022, Semi-Finals | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T19, T20, D12 | Danny Noppert | Won |
Dimitri Van den Bergh | 2024, 1st Round | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T19, T20, D12 | Martin Schindler | Won |
An average over 100 in a match in the PDC World Matchplay has been achieved 142 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 62. In 2010, Phil Taylor became the first player to average over 100 in all five rounds of the tournament. He repeated this feat in 2011 and 2013.
An average of over 105 in a match in the World Matchplay has been achieved 35 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 24. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay is 114.99 by Phil Taylor in his Last 32 victory over Barrie Bates in 2010. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay Final is 111.23 by Phil Taylor against Adrian Lewis in 2013.
Ten highest PDC World Matchplay one-match averages [5] | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Average | Player | Year (+ Round) | Opponent | Result |
114.99 | Phil Taylor | 2010, Last 32 | Barrie Bates | 10–6 |
113.43 | Phil Taylor | 1997, Last 32 | Gary Mawson | 8–0 |
112.17 | Phil Taylor | 2002, Quarter-Final | Chris Mason | 16–7 |
111.23 | Phil Taylor | 2013, Final | Adrian Lewis | 18–13 |
110.93 | Michael van Gerwen | 2015, Last 16 | Jamie Lewis | 13–2 |
110.51 | Adrian Lewis | 2014, Last 32 | Andrew Gilding | 10–0 |
110.37 | Peter Wright | 2021, Semi-Final | Michael van Gerwen | 17–10 |
109.71 | Phil Taylor | 2008, Last 16 | Colin Osborne | 13–5 |
109.47 | Phil Taylor | 2008, Final | James Wade | 18–9 |
109.47 | Phil Taylor | 2009, Last 16 | Kevin Painter | 13–3 |
Five highest losing averages | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Average | Player | Year (+ Round) | Opponent | Result |
105.92 | Adrian Lewis | 2013, Final | Phil Taylor | 13–18 |
105.68 | Gary Anderson | 2014, Semi-Final | Phil Taylor | 15–17 |
105.17 | Gary Anderson | 2017, Last 16 | Daryl Gurney | 9–11 |
104.57 | Peter Wright | 2019, Quarter-Final | Daryl Gurney | 13–16 |
104.43 | Mensur Suljović | 2018, Final | Gary Anderson | 19–21 |
Different players with a 100+ match average (Updated 21/07/24) | |||
---|---|---|---|
Player | Total | Highest Av. | Year (+ Round) |
Phil Taylor | 62 | 114.99 | 2010, Last 32 |
Michael van Gerwen | 20 | 110.93 | 2015, Last 16 |
Peter Wright | 15 | 110.37 | 2021, Semi-Final |
Gary Anderson | 11 | 106.06 | 2018, Semi-Final |
Adrian Lewis | 9 | 110.51 | 2014, Last 32 |
James Wade | 8 | 103.59 | 2015, Last 32 |
Luke Humphries | 7 | 108.76 | 2024, 1st Round |
Rob Cross | 7 | 106.99 | 2024, 2nd Round |
Dimitri Van den Bergh | 6 | 103.68 | 2021, Last 16 |
Gerwyn Price | 4 | 104.64 | 2022, Quarter-Final |
Michael Smith | 4 | 102.08 | 2024, 1st Round |
Ryan Searle | 3 | 105.19 | 2023, Last 32 |
Daryl Gurney | 3 | 104.43 | 2023, Last 16 |
Raymond van Barneveld | 3 | 103.86 | 2010, Last 16 |
Mervyn King | 3 | 101.06 | 2014, Last 32 |
Krzysztof Ratajski | 2 | 107.53 | 2020, Last 32 |
Glen Durrant | 2 | 106.93 | 2020, Last 32 |
Mensur Suljović | 2 | 104.43 | 2018, Final |
Peter Evison | 2 | 103.77 | 1996, Last 16 |
Ian White | 2 | 103.51 | 2015, Last 32 |
Dave Chisnall | 2 | 103.02 | 2018, Last 16 |
Stephen Bunting | 2 | 102.48 | 2016, Last 32 |
Danny Noppert | 2 | 102.36 | 2022, Last 16 |
Jonny Clayton | 2 | 101.90 | 2023, Last 16 |
Steve Beaton | 2 | 100.98 | 2011, Last 32 |
Joe Cullen | 2 | 100.67 | 2023, Last 32 |
Dirk van Duijvenbode | 1 | 103.61 | 2022, Last 32 |
José de Sousa | 1 | 103.26 | 2022, Last 16 |
Jeffrey de Zwaan | 1 | 103.22 | 2018, Quarter-Final |
Nathan Aspinall | 1 | 102.96 | 2019, Last 32 |
Colin Lloyd | 1 | 102.57 | 2005, Last 16 |
Shayne Burgess | 1 | 102.03 | 1999, Last 16 |
Andy Hamilton | 1 | 101.88 | 2006, Semi-Final |
Alan Warriner-Little | 1 | 101.55 | 1997, Quarter-Final |
John Henderson | 1 | 101.33 | 2019, Last 32 |
Cristo Reyes | 1 | 101.29 | 2017, Last 32 |
Rod Harrington | 1 | 101.22 | 1997, Last 32 |
Jamie Hughes | 1 | 101.13 | 2020, Last 32 |
Kevin Painter | 1 | 101.01 | 2009, Last 32 |
Damon Heta | 1 | 100.93 | 2024, 1st Round |
Luke Littler | 1 | 100.83 | 2024, 1st Round |
Gian van Veen | 1 | 100.81 | 2024, 1st Round |
Ricardo Pietreczko | 1 | 100.74 | 2024, 1st Round |
Mark Walsh | 1 | 100.41 | 2008, Last 32 |
Five highest tournament averages | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Average | Player | Year | ||
106.31 | Phil Taylor | 2010 | ||
105.81 | Phil Taylor | 2013 | ||
105.73 | Phil Taylor | 2009 | ||
105.50 | Phil Taylor | 2011 | ||
104.82 | Phil Taylor | 2008 |
From the beginning of the tournament in 1994, the World Matchplay has always been a legs only event. The length of matches for each round has changed several times over the years, as shown below.
The World Matchplay has been broadcast in the UK by Sky Sports since the first tournament. [6]
There have been seven different sponsors for the World Matchplay:
Sponsor | Years |
---|---|
Proton Cars | 1994 |
Webster's | 1995–1997 |
No sponsor | 1998–1999 |
Stan James | 2000–2010 |
Skybet | 2011 |
Betfair | 2012 |
BetVictor [1] | 2013–2018 |
Betfred | 2019– |
Philip Douglas Taylor is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed "The Power", he dominated darts for over three decades and won 214 professional tournaments, including a record 85 major titles and a record 16 World Championships. In 2015, the BBC rated Taylor among the ten greatest British sportsmen of the last 35 years.
Raymond van Barneveld is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Nicknamed "Barney", although originally known as "The Man", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest darts players of all time. Van Barneveld is a five-time World Darts Champion, a two-time UK Open Champion and a former winner of the Las Vegas Desert Classic, the Grand Slam of Darts and the Premier League. He is also a twice-winner of the World Masters and the World Darts Trophy, and a three-time winner of the International Darts League, the Dutch Open and the WDF World Cup Singles event.
John Part is a Canadian former professional darts player and current commentator. Nicknamed "Darth Maple", he is a three-time World Champion, having won the 1994 BDO World Darts Championship on his world championship debut, and the PDC World Championship in 2003 and 2008. Part is statistically North America's greatest darts player to date. He has the distinction of being the first non-UK player to win the World Championship, and the only non-European to date to win the PDC World Darts Championship.
Kevin Painter is an English retired darts player, known as "The Artist". He is arguably most famous for finishing as the runner-up to Phil Taylor in the 2004 PDC World Championship final, now widely credited as one of the greatest televised matches in the history of the sport. He was also the winner of the Players Championship Finals in 2011.
Dennis Priestley is an English former professional darts player. He won two world championships, and was the first player to win both the BDO and WDC world championships, in 1991 and 1994 respectively. He was nicknamed "The Menace", after the Beano character Dennis the Menace, and reflected this by wearing red and black and using red and black flights.
Adrian Lewis is an English professional darts player who plays in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012, also winning the 2013 European Championship and the 2014 UK Open.
James Martin Wade is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at the age of 24. This record has since been broken by Michael van Gerwen. Wade has won eleven PDC majors, third in the all-time list behind Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen.
Michael van Gerwen is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked No. 3 in the world, having been No. 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2017 and 2019. Van Gerwen is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.
The 2007 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship was the 14th World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The tournament took place between 18 December 2006 – 1 January 2007. The championship was once again held at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet, Essex, where it had been staged since the first PDC World Championship in 1994. However, it would turn out to be the last time the tournament would be held at the Tavern: in April 2007, the PDC announced that the event would be moving to Alexandra Palace from 2008.
Andrew Hamilton, nicknamed The Hammer, is an English professional darts player.
Terry Jenkins is an English former professional darts player who was nicknamed The Bull, having previously used the name "Tucker" for his matches. He reached number three in the world rankings and was a runner-up in nine major PDC televised finals, those being the 2006 and 2007 World Grand Prix, 2007 Premier League, 2007 Las Vegas Desert Classic, 2007 and 2009 World Matchplay, 2008 Grand Slam of Darts, 2014 UK Open and 2014 European Championship.
Gary James Grant Anderson is a Scottish professional darts player playing in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed "The Flying Scotsman", after the famous steam train, he is a former BDO and WDF world number one, and a two-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2015 and 2016. He is regarded as one of the best darts players of all time.
Stephen Bunting is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting is the reigning Masters champion. He also won the 2014 BDO World Darts Championship and is a twice former BDO World Masters champion.
Paul Michael Nicholson is an English former professional darts player who played in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He won a major event, the 2010 Players Championship Finals, where he defeated Mervyn King in the final. He was also the runner-up to Phil Taylor in the 2011 Championship League Darts, and part of the Australia team which lost a sudden death shoot-out to England in the 2012 PDC World Cup of Darts final.
Dave Chisnall is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked No. 7 in the world.
Peter Stuart Wright is a Scottish professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is currently ranked No. 10 in the world. Nicknamed "Snakebite", he is a two-time world champion, having won the PDC World Darts Championship in 2020 and 2022. He is also a World Matchplay champion and has been ranked as the World No. 1 in the PDC twice.
Michael Smith is an English professional darts player. Nicknamed "Bully Boy", he plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked No. 3 in the world. He is a former world champion, having won the 2023 World Championship.
The 2016 BetVictor World Matchplay was the 23rd annual staging of the World Matchplay, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The tournament took place at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, from 16–24 July 2016.
The 2018 William Hill World Darts Championship was a darts event, held between 14 December 2017 and 1 January 2018 at the Alexandra Palace in London, United Kingdom. It was the 25th World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation.
The 2018 BetVictor World Matchplay was the 25th annual staging of the World Matchplay, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The tournament took place at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, from 21–29 July 2018.