Early 2026 World Cup of Darts country/pairs predictions

Luke Humphries and Luke Littler

Early 2026 World Cup of Darts country/pairs predictions originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

We're still a couple of months away from the 2026 World Cup of Darts, but the list of countries qualified is starting to build up, and the countdown is officially underway for the latest edition of the event.

We aren't entirely sure of what players will be representing each country, but today, we're going to take a look at the most likely scenarios for what pairs will represent their countries in June.

Predicting 2026 World Cup of Darts player pairs

Let's take a look first at the countries that have already confirmed their spots at the event.

England

Predicted pairing:

• Luke Littler
• Luke Humphries

Backup player:

• James Wade

The world number one and two will look for revenge after suffering an early loss at the event last year against Germany.

There's nothing other English players can do to challenge the Lukes for a spot on Team England, so we'll see the same pair play for the second year in a row.

Even with last year's result in mind, they'll come in as the likely favorites due to their dominance in darts over the past couple of years.

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Netherlands

Predicted pairing:

• Gian van Veen
• Michael van Gerwen

Backup player:

• Danny Noppert

MVG chose not to participate last year in the event and has only played in it once over the last four years.

We expect to see him back in action this year; however, if he chooses not to compete, Danny Noppert would pair up with Gian van Veen again, after the pair made a run to the semifinals in 2025.

There's a slim chance Noppert could overtake MVG on the OoM, but it would require a huge surge in the coming months.

Wales

Predicted pairing:

• Jonny Clayton
• Gerwyn Price

Backup player:

• Nick Kenny

Clayton and Price are one of the most successful duos in World Cup history, as they've won the event twice and made numerous other runs, including their runner-up result last year.

We expect to see both players come back in an attempt to bring home a third WC title to Wales, with both players in great form over recent months.

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Northern Ireland

Predicted pairing:

• Josh Rock
• Daryl Gurney

Backup player:

• N/A

The reigning champs will come back together and look to go back-to-back.

A few of Northern Ireland's backups changed their nationalities in the past few months, so if there was any doubt about the pair, there isn't now, as they will return for the second year in a row.

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Scotland

Predicted pairing:

• Gary Anderson
• Cameron Menzies

Backup player:

• Peter Wright

The days of the iconic Scottish pair of Wright and Anderson seem to have come to an end, as the seven-time duo won't play for the first time together at the World Cup since 2022.

Instead, we'll likely see Menzies make his World Cup debut, becoming the fifth Scottish player to represent Scotland at the event.

They aren't on track to be a seeded team with a bye, so they'll need to play in the group stage.

Germany

Predicted pairing:

• Martin Schindler
• Ricardo Pietreczko

Backup players:

• Niko Springer
• Gabriel Clemens

Schindler and Pietreczko made their debut as a pair last year and will most likely return together in 2026.

There's a small chance Springer makes a run for the second spot, but it would take a strong stretch on the Pro Tour from him to get it done.

Germany made it all the way to the semifinal round last year, and with the home crowd on their side, they'll look to make some noise once again.

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Belgium

Predicted pairing:

• Mike De Decker
• Dimitri Van den Bergh

Backup player:

• Kim Huybrechts

This Belgian pair had a far from ideal result last year, not making it out of the group stage.

They'll return this year if they both choose to compete, and with both players out of form, it could be another rough campaign for them.

Belgium has never won the event, but is a seven-time semifinalist and was the runner-up in 2013.

Poland

Predicted pairing:

• Krzysztof Ratajski
• Sebastian Bialecki

Backup player:

• Tytus Kanik

Ratajski is set to make his 11th straight and 13th overall personal appearance at the event.

Poland's best result was getting to the last 16, but you could argue they have their best pairing ever set to play this year, as Bialecki is a young, up-and-coming player who will likely be paired with 2026 PDC WC quarterfinalist Ratajski.

Ireland

Predicted pairing:

• William O'Connor
• Keane Barry

Backup player:

• Shane McGuirk

O'Connor is set to play in his 16th World Cup of Darts, and will likely return with Barry for the fourth straight year.

The pair were quarterfinalists last year, and after some positive recent months from both players, they'll look to go a step further this year.

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Sweden

Predicted pairing:

• Jeffrey de Graaf
• Oskar Lukasiak

Backup player:

• Viktor Tingstrom

De Graaf is a lock to be the first Swedish player in the event this year, but there's a tight race between Lukasiak and Tingstrom for the right to be the second player in.

Lukasiak has what might be a big enough lead on the OoM since both players are near the bottom, but we won't know which player will participate until the event gets closer.

De Graaf and Lukasiak have played together at the World Cup for the last two years, with their quarterfinal run in 2024 as their most notable result together.

As it stands now, they'd be the #10 seed.

Czech Republic

Predicted pairing:

• Karel Sedlacek
• Adam Gawlas

Backup player:

• N/A

Sedlacek and Gawlas seem like a guaranteed pair to play together at the World Cup in June, as both players are the only two tour card holders from their country at the moment.

They didn't play together last year, but have been a pair for five previous tournaments, with a second-round result in 2024 as their best campaign.

Australia

Predicted pairing:

• Damon Heta
• Adam Leek

Backup player:

• N/A

With Leek getting a tour card recently, we won't see 2022 World Cup champion Simon Whitlock play at the event.

A six-year run of the pair of Heta and Whitlock will come to an end, with world number 140, Leek, joining Heta this year.

Austria

Predicted pairing:

• Mensur Suljovic
• Rusty-Jake Rodriguez

Backup player:

• N/A

Suljovic will return for the 16th time at the event, and will likely play with Rusty-Jake Rodriguez for the second year in a row.

Suljovic was a runner-up in 2024 and 2021 with Rodriguez's brother.

Latvia

Predicted pairing:

• Madars Razma
• Valters Melderis

Backup player:

• N/A

Razma will return for a 6th year in the tournament, and should play with Melderis for the third straight year.

They have failed to make it past the group stage in the past two years.

Croatia

Predicted pairing:

• Boris Krcmar
• Pero Ljubic

Backup player:

• N/A

Krcmar will play for the fifth time in the event.

He'll likely pair up with Pero Ljubic after they debuted together in 2025.

France

Predicted pairing:

• Thibault Tricole
• Jacques Labre

Backup player:

• N/A

Tricole is one of the better players on a non-seeded team, but doesn't have a definite teammate for the World Cup at the moment.

France is set to make their fifth appearance at the event, and Tricole has played in three of the four times they participated.

Considering we've seen Jacques Labre play in all four of France's appearances, expect to see him complete the French pair.

Norway

Predicted pairing:

• Cor Dekker
• Jonny Pedersen/Kent Jøran Sivertsen

Backup player:

• N/A

Dekker is the current world number 73 and has played well in opportunities on the PDC Tour.

His partner at the event is still TBD, but expect to see either Pedersen or Jøran Sivertsen based on their OoM standing on the Nordic and Baltic tour.

Canada

Predicted pairing:

• Jim Long
• David Cameron

Backup player:

• Matt Campbell

Long is the sole Canadian PDC tour card holder at the moment, so there is still a spot up for grabs.

With how the OoM appears on the CDC Tour, we could expect to see a player like David Cameron return this year to compete.

Spain

Predicted pairing:

• Cristo Reyes
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Reyes has had an impressive return to the PDC since getting his tour card back in January.

We know we'll see him at the event, but his partner is still to be determined.

Lithuania

Predicted pairing:

• Darius Labanauskas
• Mindaugas Barauskas

Backup player:

• N/A

We expect to see the same pair as the previous seven years at this event, led by Darius Labanauskas.

Slovenia

Predicted pairing:

• Benjamin Pratnemer
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Slovenia will make its return to the World Cup for the first time since 2010.

Pratnemer will represent his country, but his partner hasn't been confirmed yet.

Switzerland

Predicted pairing:

• Stefan Bellmont
• Alex Fehlmann

Backup player:

• N/A

Bellmont has established himself as a respectable player with valuable experience on big stages.

We've seen Bellmont in the last four World Cups, and signs point towards Fehlmann potentially returning to pair with Bellmont for the second year in a row.

Hungary

Predicted pairing:

• Patrik Kovacs
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Kovacs is the current world number 141 and will likely be one of Hungary's players this year.

He has experience in the event, but Hungary has had many different players compete, so the second spot is still up for grabs.

China

Predicted pairing:

• Xiaochen Zong
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Zong has played in recent World Cups, so he'll likely be China's first player at the event.

Lihao Wen has played in two of the last three events, so he is a candidate to fill the second spot.

Hong Kong

Predicted pairing:

• Lok-Yin Lee
• Man Lok Leung

Backup player:

• N/A

Although Hong Kong doesn't have any tour card holders, we could expect to see these two players return as the country's pair once again.

They have played together at the event for the last three years, and Leung has played in the last four World Cups.

India

Predicted pairing:

• Nitin Kumar
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Kumar is the most well-known player from India, playing in the World Cup last year and also making history at Alexandra Palace a few months ago, when he became the first Indian player to win a WC match.

Mohan Goel was Kumar's partner last year, but it's still to be determined who will join Kumar.

Italy

Predicted pairing:

• Michele Turetta
• Massimo Dalla Rosa

Backup player:

• N/A

Turetta has been Italy's main player at the last three World Cups and led Italy to a quarterfinal run in 2024.

Dalla Rosa joined Turetta the last two years, so we could see him pair up with Turetta again.

Japan

Predicted pairing:

• Motomu Sakai
• Ryusei Azemoto

Backup player:

• Tomoya Goto

Japan is another one of the asian countries that brings an exciting pair to the World Cup each year.

Azemoto and Goto have been the pair for the last two years, but Sakai is currently the leader on the Asian Tour OoM, so we could see him make his debut at the World Cup this year.

New Zealand

Predicted pairing:

• Haupai Puha
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

Puha has been featured in the last two World Cups and is a four-time participant.

I'd expect to see him there, but there seem to be several players from New Zealand in the mix, like Jonny Tata, Ben Robb, Mark Cleaver, etc.

Phillippines

Predicted pairing:

• Alexis Toylo
• Paolo Nebrida

Backup player:

• Lourence Ilagan

Ilagan and Nebrida were the pair last year to make it out of the group stage, but with Toylo currently as the highest-ranked player from his country on the Asia Tour, he'd likely make the cut for the team this year.

Expect to see movement in this race, as events are coming up at the beginning of May on the Asian Tour.

Portugal

Predicted pairing:

• Jose De Sousa
• TBD

Backup player:

• N/A

De Sousa is by far the best player to come out of his country, and he's participated in all six of Portugal's World Cup appearances.

He's had five different partners across those six events, so we don't know which player he could pair up with in June.

South Africa

Predicted pairing:

• Devon Petersen
• Cameron Carolissen

Backup player:

• N/A

Petersen is an 11-time participant in the event, and as the face of South African darts, we expect to see him back.

Carolissen has been his partner for the last two years and has made other appearances at PDC events, including the WC, so I'd expect the two to pair up for a third straight year at the World Cup.

United States

Predicted pairing:

• Adam Sevada
• Stowe Buntz

Backup players:

• Leonards Gates
• Danny Lauby

TheUnited States no longer has any tour card holders, so they won't come into the event as a seeded team.

This also means the two players who will represent them this year could be different.

Based on recent performances, we could see Sevada and Buntz, but players like Gates and Lauby are in the mix to make the World Cup as well.

Uganda

Predicted pairing:

• Patrick Ocheng
• Juma Said

Backup players:

• N/A

Uganda won the ADG African Qualifier in March and punched their ticket to the World Cup.

It's the first time the country has qualified for the event.

*The following teams haven't qualified yet and are the countries/pairs I project to fill up the remaining spots available

Guyana

Predicted pairing:

• Sudesh Fitzgerald
• Norman Madhoo

Backup player:

• N/A

Guyana currently has the #3 and #4 ranked players on the CDLC OoM.

They made the World Cup two years ago and could be in the run to make it again if they win the CDLC qualifier event.

Singapore

Predicted pairing:

• Paul Lim
• Phuay Wei Tan

Backup player:

• N/A

Singapore has qualified for the event for 12 straight years, with Lim being involved in all 12 years.

Tan was Lim's partner last year, so we expect them to pair up again if they make it through the Asian qualifier.

Chinese Taipei

Predicted pairing:

• Teng Lieh Pupo
• An-Sheng Lu

Backup player:

• N/A

Chinese Taipei has qualified for the last two years, and this same pair has been in both years.

Chinese Taipei can qualify for the event through the Asian qualifier.

Malaysia

Predicted pairing:

• Tengku Shah
• Tan Jenn Ming

Malaysia has also qualified in recent years and seems likely to come through to claim one of the last Asian qualifying spots.

Denmark

Predicted pairing:

• Jonas Sørensen
• Jonas Graversen

Backup player:

• Andreas Hyllgaardhus

Denmark could debut a completely new lineup this year.

They are currently in a good position to qualify for the event based on their players' standing on the PDCNB OoM.

Finland

Predicted pairing:

• Jani Haavisto
• Jonas Masalin

Backup player:

• N/A

Finland will likely debut a new pair this year.

Haavisto has prior experience at this event.

They are currently in a good position to qualify for the event based on their players' standing on the PDCNB OoM.

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