The World Darts Championship contenders outside Luke Littler and Luke Humphries

The top two players on the planet are being widely tipped to shine at the World Darts Championship, but which of the other 126 players can make an impact at Alexandra Palace?

Luke Littler is the defending champion, world number one and hot favourite to get his hands on the Sid Waddell Trophy for a second time.

The 18-year-old has not shown any sign of feeling the pressure as world champ, winning a string of major titles in 2025.

Luke Humphries, the man who beat Littler in the 2024 World Championship final, remains his chief rival and has won big this year as well, notably at the Premier League.

Cool Hand has gone the distance at Ally Pally before and knows he can down the Nuke, so he too has to be considered as a very live threat.

The odds stretch pretty significantly after the two Lukes, but there are plenty of possible champions in the field in north London.

Here are six players capable of giving the top two in the world a run for their money at the Palace.

Gerwyn Price

The Iceman has been consistently good at the World Championship, with three quarter-finals, a semi and of course the title in the last six years.

It’s been a good season for the Welshman and has won a lot of games of late, reaching the semis of the Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals.

The 40-year-old is in Littler’s quarter so may need to become only the second player to beat the Nuke at Ally Pally if he is to get his hands on the trophy.

Gian van Veen

The 23-year-old is now firmly among the best in the business, sitting at number 10 in the world rankings thanks to his European Championship win this season.

The Dutchman averaged 101 in that Dortmund final as he beat Humphries 11-10, demonstrating his pedigree in some style.

The Giant is in Humphries’ quarter and what a last eight that would be, but there is a long way to go before that for a player who hasn’t won a single game in this event before.

Josh Rock

The 24-year-old won the World Cup with Northern Ireland teammate Daryl Gurney in June but is still searching for his first major singles title.

He has come close, with semi-final runs at the UK Open and World Matchplay, and more recent quarter-final jaunts at the Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals.

He is in a Littler and Humphries free quarter, but there are threats in the forms of Michael van Gerwen, Gary Anderson, Danny Noppert and others in his section.

Michael van Gerwen

No one in the field has won more PDC World Darts Championships than Michael van Gerwen, so he has to be considered a threat, especially as he made it to the final 12 months ago.

Things have not gone well for MVG since then, though, with a number of distractions away from the oche taking their toll on his arrows.

Mighty Mike beat Littler and Humphries on his way to winning the World Series of Darts Finals in September, so the old magic is in there, he just needs to find it when it really counts.

Stephen Bunting

Twice an Ally Pally semi-finalist, including a year ago, Stephen Bunting arrives as number four in the world rankings.

He appears to be in the easiest quarter of the draw, so another run to the semis is very much a possibility for the 40-year-old.

Could he down either Luke over distance in a semi or the final? It is a bit of a long shot, but vastly experienced and more confident than ever, it is not out of the question.

Beau Greaves

This really is a long shot, but with Beau Greaves, we do not really know her ceiling just yet.

She certainly hasn’t produced her best stuff on the big stages and when she does she will be capable of beating anybody.

There is a chance she falls at the first hurdle in a tough first round game against Gurney, but if she gets on a roll she could be tough to stop.

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