The 2025 Betfred World Matchplay gets underway on Saturday evening, as Luke Humphries opens his title defence on a star-studded opening night in Blackpool.
Day One of the £800,000 event will see Humphries begin his bid for back-to-back titles with a blockbuster clash against World Youth Champion Gian van Veen, while 2023 champion Nathan Aspinall faces Dutch debutant Wessel Nijman in another stellar showdown.
2007 champion James Wade - also a five-time World Matchplay runner-up - plays 2023 semi-finalist Joe Cullen in the tournament's curtain-raiser, before former UK Open champion Danny Noppert faces newcomer Cameron Menzies for a place in the last 16.
The Betfred World Matchplay will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK & Ireland, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).
Click here for live scores, match stats & results.
2025 Betfred World Matchplay
Saturday July 19 (1900 BST)
First Round x4
James Wade 10-3 Joe Cullen
Danny Noppert v Cameron Menzies
Luke Humphries v Gian van Veen
Nathan Aspinall v Wessel Nijman
Best of 19 legs
Each game must be won by two clear legs, with up to a maximum of five additional legs being played before the sixth "extra" leg is sudden-death.
