Premier League of Darts

Premier League Darts is one of the biggest and most lucrative tournaments on the calendar boasting a £1 million prize fund. First staged in 2005 and originally touring leisure centres and town halls in the UK, the Premier League of Darts is now a cross-continental event and is held in some of the largest indoor arenas across the UK, Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands. The darts Premier League is played over 17 consecutive Thursday nights from February through to May each year, with eight of the world’s best players competing against each other to determine who is the premier player in the world of darts. 

The 2025 edition of the Premier League marked the 21st year of the competition and had an exciting conclusion, as the world number one Luke Humphries defeated the reigning PDC world champion Luke Littler 11-8 in the play-off final to win the title. The Premier League Darts play-off line up for 2025 also included Nathan Aspinall and Gerwyn Price, with the tournament finale taking place at The O2 in London on May 29!

Stephen Bunting (pictured above) made his long-awaited return to the Premier League in 2025, having previously competed in the 2015 season and as a 'challenger' in 2020

▪ Luke Humphries - 2024 PDC world champion

▪ Luke Littler – 2025 PDC world champion

▪ Michael van Gerwen – 7-time Premier League champion

▪ Rob Cross – 2018 PDC world champion

▪ Stephen Bunting - 2024 Masters champion

▪ Gerwyn Price – 2021 PDC world champion

▪ Chris Dobey - 2023 Masters champion

▪ Nathan Aspinall – 2023 World Matchplay champion

The Premier League Darts format has undergone many changes during its history, with seven and 10-player line ups, relegations, contenders and challengers all featuring at some point in the first 20 years of its existence. Ahead of the 2022 season, the Premier League Darts new format saw eight players selected and a nightly tournament held every week with points on offer in each game.

The top four players on the PDC (Professional Darts Corporation) Order of Merit automatically qualify, which in 2025 was Luke Humphries, Luke Littler, Michael van Gerwen and Rob Cross. These four players were joined by four wildcards, and in 2025 the PDC's picks were Stephen Bunting, Gerwyn Price, Chris Dobey and Nathan Aspinall.

The first 16 weeks of the competition sees the eight selected players compete in a nightly tournament with all matches played over the best of 11 legs. The current darts Premier League format sees five points awarded to the winner of each night, three points to the runner-up and two points to each of the losing semi-finalists. The four losing quarter-finalists do not score any points.

The points go towards a league table with the top four players after the 16 weeks qualifying for the end of season play-offs, with first playing fourth and second facing third in the semi-finals, which are the best of 19 legs. The Premier League Darts final format is slightly longer with it being the best of 21 legs. The winner of the final is crowned the Premier League Darts champion.

The Premier League Darts prize money has risen over the years, starting off with a £150,000 total prize pot in 2005 and reaching the £1 million mark in 2022. The £1 million prize fund is split between the eight players, with a £10,000 bonus on offer during each of the first 16 weeks of the tournament. The nightly winner will pocket the bonus each night, whilst the final league standings and the play-offs carries the majority of the prize fund...

Premier League play-offs
Winner - £275,000
Runner-up - £125,000
Semi-finalists - £85,000

Premier League final standings
5th place - £75,000
6th place - £70,000
7th place - £65,000
8th place - £60,000

The Premier League's £1 million prize pot sits only behind the PDC World Darts Championship (£2.5 million, rising to £5 million in 2025/26) in terms of the biggest tournament prize funds in the game. Have you ever wondered how much money the top professionals actually earn though? Find out more in our 'How Much Do Dart Players Make?' blog.

The Premier League Darts season sees the players compete every Thursday evening in a different city before the champion is crowned in the play-offs. Here’s a look at the schedule and night winners for the 2025 Premier League Darts season…

▪ February 6 - Night 1 - Belfast (The SSE Arena) Night Winner: Luke Humphries

▪ February 13 - Night 2 - Glasgow (OVO Hydro) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ February 20 - Night 3 - Dublin (3Arena) Night Winner: Gerwyn Price

▪ February 27 - Night 4 - Exeter (Westpoint Exeter) Night Winner: Luke Humphries

▪ March 6 - Night 5 - Brighton (The Brighton Centre) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ March 13 - Night 6 - Nottingham (Motorpoint Arena) Night Winner: Gerwyn Price

▪ March 20 - Night 7 - Cardiff (Utilita Arena) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ March 27 - Night 8 - Newcastle (Utilita Arena) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ April 3 - Night 9 - Berlin (Uber Arena) Night Winner: Stephen Bunting

▪ April 10 - Night 10 - Manchester (AO Arena) Night Winner: Nathan Aspinall

▪ April 17 - Night 11 - Rotterdam (Rotterdam Ahoy) Night Winner: Chris Dobey

▪ April 24 - Night 12 - Liverpool (M&S Bank Arena) Night Winner: Gerwyn Price

▪ May 1 - Night 13 - Birmingham (Utilita Arena) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ May 8 - Night 14 - Leeds (First Direct Arena) Night Winner: Luke Humphries

▪ May 15 - Night 15 - Aberdeen (P&J Live) Night Winner: Nathan Aspinall

▪ May 22 - Night 16 - Sheffield (Utilita Arena) Night Winner: Luke Littler

▪ May 29 - Play-Offs - London (The O2) Night Winner: Luke Humphries

With crowds in their thousands flocking to see the world’s best darts players in action, the Premier League of Darts shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Every dart of the 2025 Premier League was shown live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland, whilst the PDC’s other worldwide broadcasters include DAZN and Viaplay, and their own PDCTV service meant darts fans all over the world could tune in and watch the action unfold.

To celebrate the new Premier League season, get your own darts setup ready with our full range of dartboards, darts shirts, dart flights and darts cases.

Pictures: PDC