The PDC’s 2026 Premier League Darts Stars Revealed on Sky Sports

by Roy Brindley, 7 January 2026

The lineup for Darts’ 2026 Premier League has been confirmed. Action gets underway on February 5 in Newcastle.

Gian van Veen is one of two Premier League debutants. ©PDC

Key Facts:

• The lineup for Darts’ next major competition, the 17-night Premier League, has been announced.
• Old foes Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen are in the field alongside Luke Littler.
• World Youth Champions Gian van Veen and Josh Rock set to make Premier League debuts.
• No place for Noppert as Price and Bunting controversially get invites.

The dust has yet to fully settle on Luke Littler’s ruthless World Championship success. 66,682 darts thrown, 2,228 legs played – generating 1,127 180s, and seventeen 170 checkouts – conspired to make this year’s competition one of the most exciting ever.

Keen to strike while the action is fresh in people’s minds, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) used Sky Sports News to unveil the lineup for its next major competition, the 17-night Premier League, on Monday afternoon.

As a back-to-back World Champion, Luke Littler’s participation in the competition was never in doubt. The teenage sensation will be joined on the roadshow by his old foes, Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen.

MVG will be making his 14th appearance in the competition. He is a seven-time winner, albeit a drop in form means online betting sites rate the three-time World Champion as their sixth favourite quoted on 14/1 odds.

Youth Champions and a Welsh Dragon

Gian van Veen, the 2024 and 2025 PDC World Youth Champion, is one of two debutants in the 2026 BetMGM Premier League. The 23-year-old won the European Championship in October, and the Dutchman was the beaten finalist in the World Championship a week ago.

Josh Rock, also a former World Youth Champion, is another Premier League first-timer. Glory in the World Cup of Darts and semi-final appearances in the UK Open and World Matchplay were enough to see him receive a golden ticket from the PDC.

"I think it's made for him" ✅

Wayne Mardle on Josh Rock's chances in the Premier League 💭 pic.twitter.com/PiNWNT3WNN

— Sky Sports Darts (@SkySportsDarts) January 5, 2026

It is well over two years since Jonny Clayton won a televised major, but a string of impressive results has seen him rise to a personal best of number five on the World Rankings. Such a lofty position meant the 51-year-old Welshman’s Premier League invitation was expected. The top four players are ‘automatic qualifiers’.

Price and Bunting and Questions

Slipping down the rankings – to number 12, his lowest position since 2017 – Gerwyn Price’s participation in the 2026 Premier League has raised some eyebrows. The 2021 World Championship winner last won a significant ‘solo’ trophy in September 2022.

However, the Welshman did reach two major ranking finals in 2025 and made the play-off stages of the Premier League. Furthermore, alongside Jonny Clayton, he made the final of the World Cup of Darts.

It was Stephen Bunting’s inclusion that led to Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle to question the selectors. “I’m slightly surprised at Stephen Bunting. He’s had a decent enough year, but not as good as some in my opinion,” he said during Sky’s lineup announcement.

“He can consider himself a little fortunate. He played OK in the Premier League last year, but results didn’t go well, especially for the first eight weeks when he didn’t win a game. You can’t argue with any of them in terms of their ability and what they are capable of, but Bunting will be the one who will breathe a huge sigh of relief.”

Following last year’s World Championship – where Bunting was a semi-finalist – the Merseyside player failed to go beyond the quarter-finals of any televised major. He also finished at the bottom of the Premier League standings.

Unlucky for Noppert Says Mardle

Of the players not in the £1.25 million Premier League, Wayne Mardle expressed surprise that Danny Noppert did not earn a place in the field. Speaking of the world number 10, he said, “Danny Noppert has been really unlucky. He’s reached the semi-finals of four majors.”

“Nathan Aspinall had a squeak, but Noppert? What’s he got to do? He won the UK Open a few years ago. Since then, he’s got better and better. Maybe he’s got to reach a final or win one, but Stephen [Bunting] hasn’t done that this year.”

“With the performances of last year, I thought that would have gone against him rather than for him, but he [Stephen Bunting] has got a massive following,” Mardle acknowledged.

Points Make Thursday Night Prizes

The 2026 Premier League, televised by Sky Sports, will run from Thursday, 5 February to Thursday, 28 May 2026, with events held at arenas across the UK, Ireland, and continental Europe. Each league night features all eight players competing in a mini knockout tournament.

Players receive two points for a semi-final finish, three points as a beaten finalist and five points for a nighty tournament win. Following 16 weeks of league action, the top four players in the table contest the two play-off semi-finals, with the winners progressing to the final in London’s O2 Arena.