Luke Littler, Jan Van Veen and Luke Humphries have been awarded a first round berth at this year’s Bahrain Darts Masters, the first event of the 2026 World Series of Darts.
World champion Littler was given a high-profile draw with 71-year-old Paul Lim as the first round headliner in a clash of youth and experience.
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Highlights of the World Championship final between Luke Littler and Jan van Veen
Second seeded Jean Van Veen will be looking for revenge in his match against Man Loc Leung (Hong Kong). The two faced each other at Alexandra Palace in 2023, when Leon came from three sets down to win 3-2, eliminating Van Veen from the World Championship.
Michael van Gerwen will take on PDC Asian Tour winner Alexis Toiro, while Gerwyn Price will face fan favorite Motomu Sakai, the Japanese player who made his world championship debut last month.
Humphries faces a number of opponents, including Bahrain’s Abdullah Saeed, while reigning champion Stephen Bunting faces two-time world championship qualifier Ryusei Azemoto.
2026 Bahrain Masters Schedule
Stephen Bunting at the World Darts Championship
Round 1 – Thursday 15th January – Best of 11 Legs
Gerwyn Price v Motomu Sakai
Jean Van Veen vs Man Rok Leung
Danny Noppert v Bassem Mahmoud
Nathan Aspinall v Lawrence Ilagan
Luke Humphries v Abdullah Said
Luke Littler v Paul Lim
Michael van Gerwen vs Alexis Toiro
Stephen Bunting v Ryusei Kemoto
Quarterfinals – Friday 16th January – Best of 11 Legs
Littler/Lim v Price/Sakai
Van Gerwen/Toiro v Bunting/Azemoto
Humphries/Said v Aspinall/Ilagan
Van Veen/Leon v Noppert/Mahmoud
Semi-final
best of 13 legs
final
best of 15 legs
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