The 2026 World Series of Darts has kicked off with the Bahrain Darts Masters. The format sees eight of the best players from the Professional Darts Corporation take on eight regional representatives in the last-16.

After the Bahrain event, the series continues in Saudi Arabia, Denmark, the United States, New Zealand and Australia, before concluding with the Grand Final in the Netherlands in September.

The winner of each international event earns £30,000 from a £100,000 prize fund, while the World Series of Darts Grand Final carries a total prize fund of £450,000, with £100,000 awarded to the champion.

One day for everything: Bahrain Darts Masters heads from quarters to final

It will be a busy day in Bahrain, with the tournament moving from the quarter-finals to the final and a champion crowned tonight.

All eight Professional Darts Corporation representatives came through their last-16 matches against Asian opponents, with two-time world champion Luke Littler producing a tournament-high average of 106 in his victory over 71-year-old Singaporean Paul Lim.

From quarter-finals to champion: line-up and predictions

The quarter-finals, played as best-of-11 legs, get under way at 4pm GMT today. They will be followed by the semi-finals, played over best-of-13 legs, before the tournament concludes with a best-of-15 legs final.

Quarter-finals

Luke Littler v Gerwyn Price

The quarter-finals open with world number one Luke Littler facing former world champion Gerwyn Price. Given Littler’s dominance over the sport over the past year, it is difficult to look beyond a victory for the 19-year-old sensation.

Price’s best chance may lie in catching Littler cold early on and ensuring his finishing on the doubles is close to flawless.

Prediction: Littler 6-3

Michael van Gerwen v Stephen Bunting

It is clear that ‘Mighty Mike’ is not the player he once was, and after a limp fourth-round defeat to Gary Anderson at the World Championship, van Gerwen will be desperate to arrest his slide and return to challenging for the sport’s biggest titles.

He faces a player in Bunting whose form has often come in streaks, but who has shown far greater consistency over the past twelve months. It should be a close contest, but one that may go Bunting’s way and offer further cause for concern for the once dominant Dutchman.

Prediction: Bunting 6-4

Luke Humphries v Nathan Aspinall

Luke Humphries averaged 103 in his last-16 victory, whitewashing Abdulla Saeed. If he can maintain that level, it is difficult to see Nathan Aspinall having enough in the tank to get past the former world champion.

Prediction: Humphries 6-2

Gian van Veen v Danny Noppert

Gian van Veen announced himself in style on the PDC tour over the past three months, defeating Luke Humphries 11–10 in the European Championship final before reaching the final of this year’s World Championship, where he fell to the unstoppable Littler.

Noppert, meanwhile, has struggled to live up to expectations since winning the UK Open in 2022. Formidable on his day, he may still find Gian van Veen has too much in the tank on this occasion.

Prediction: van Veen 6-3

Semi-final and final predictions

It is difficult to see any scenario in which the final does not feature Luke Littler. If Bunting progresses from his quarter-final and finds his best form, he has the quality to come through, though much will again depend on whether Littler is on hot form from the opening leg. And sometimes that isn’t even enough given his ability to claw back any deficit.

Should the second semi-final pit Humphries against van Veen, it would carry the potential to echo their meeting at the World Championship, where the Dutchman dismantled Humphries in a stunning performance.

Who will win the title?

On current form and dominance, Luke Littler looks the clear favourite, operating on a level that feels a step beyond the rest of the field.

Winner: Luke Littler to beat Gian van Veen 8-5

John Higgins and Judd Trump will face off in Saturday’s first semi-final after coming through quarter-finals of contrasting quality.

Higgins, 50, rolled back the years with a superb comeback from 5–3 down to defeat the current world champion Zhao Xintong, while Trump continued this year’s dominant 6–2 theme by beating Mark Allen in a match that proved far tougher than the scoreline suggested.

Higgins stops world champion Zhao with thrilling comeback

John Higgins 6 – 5 Zhao Xintong (best of 11 frames)

John Higgins proved he can still stand toe to toe with the very best, producing a tenacious fightback from 5–2 down to claim a remarkable victory in the deciding frame.

Zhao Xintong, playing fearlessly in his first Masters quarter-final, looked the more fluent of the two in the early frames, compiling breaks of 89 and 74. But John Higgins dug in to keep the match level after six frames, helped by a superb century break of 114.

Errors in the seventh and eighth frames allowed Zhao to move to the brink of the semi-finals, but Higgins summoned every ounce of experience to claw back the deficit and force a deciding frame.

The final frame appeared to be going Zhao’s way until he missed a long red to bring his break to an end at 53. John Higgins stepped in, cleared the table, and sealed a dramatic victory to reach his first Masters semi-final since 2018.

Trump finds just enough form to edge out Allen

Judd Trump 6 – 2 Mark Allen

The second semi-final proved a less enthralling affair, with neither Judd Trump nor Mark Allen producing their best.

World number one Judd Trump appeared to struggle with his positional play early on, but Mark Allen, who was playing the better of the two, failed to capitalise as the opening four frames were shared.

The match, dominated by prolonged safety exchanges, gradually tipped in Trump’s favour as he proved the more positive and clinical, reeling off four straight frames after the mid-session interval.

Trump will need to raise his level for Saturday’s meeting with Higgins, but it is likely to be a more fluid contest than his match against Allen, given the contrast in tempo between the two opponents.