The schedule of play for the 2026 Machineseeker European Championship has been confirmed, with reigning champion Gian van Veen beginning his title defence on Thursday’s opening night in Dortmund.
The £750,000 Premier event sees a 32-player field feature at the Westfalenhalle from October 22-25, with 16 round one ties split across Thursday and Friday evenings.
Defending champion Van Veen and world number two Luke Humphries are among the headline acts on Thursday evening, with Dutch number one Van Veen kicking off his Dortmund campaign against former UK Open champion Andrew Gilding.
Last year’s runner-up Humphries faces World Championship semi-finalist Ryan Searle, while two-time champion Rob Cross takes on Gerwyn Price in a rematch of the 2019 final.
Former champions James Wade and Ross Smith will also star on the opening night of action, as the pair have been pitted against Damon Heta and Karel Sedlacek respectively.
On Friday evening, world number one Luke Littler and four-time champion Michael van Gerwen take centre stage, with Littler’s hunt for a first European Championship beginning against Irish number one William O’Connor.
Van Gerwen will face fellow Dutchman Kevin Doets in a tantalising round one contest, while former World Grand Prix winner Jonny Clayton locks horns with Niko Springer.
German number one Martin Schindler will feature on home soil against number two seed Wessel Nijman, while former semi-finalist Nathan Aspinall takes on Spain’s Cristo Reyes.
Saturday’s action will see eight round two ties played across the afternoon and evening sessions, before the quarter-finals take place on Sunday afternoon ahead of the semi-finals and final on Sunday evening.
2026 Machineseeker European Championship
Thursday October 22 (1900-2300 CEST, 1800-2200 BST)
Round One x8
Luke Woodhouse v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Danny Noppert v Stephen Bunting
Niels Zonneveld v Cameron Menzies
Gerwyn Price v Rob Cross
James Wade v Damon Heta
Luke Humphries v Ryan Searle
Gian van Veen v Andrew Gilding
Ross Smith v Karel Sedlacek
Friday October 23 (1900-2300 CEST, 1800-2200 BST)
Round One x8
Ryan Joyce v Jermaine Wattimena
Krzysztof Ratajski v Dave Chisnall
Nathan Aspinall v Cristo Reyes
Jonny Clayton v Niko Springer
Luke Littler v William O'Connor
Wessel Nijman v Martin Schindler
Kevin Doets v Michael van Gerwen
Josh Rock v Chris Dobey
Saturday October 24
Afternoon Session (1300-1700 CEST, 1200-1600 BST)
Round Two x4 – order of games TBC
Smith/Sedlacek v Wade/Heta
Van Veen/Gilding v Woodhouse/Van Duijvenbode
Zonneveld/Menzies v Price/Cross
Noppert/Bunting v Humphries/Searle
Evening Session (1900-2300 CEST, 1800-2200 BST)
Round Two x4 – order of games TBC
Nijman/Schindler v Joyce/Wattimena
Clayton/Springer v Rock/Dobey
Ratajski/Chisnall v Doets/Van Gerwen
Aspinall/Reyes v Littler/O'Connor
Sunday October 25
Afternoon Session (1300-1700 CET, 1200-1600 GMT)
Quarter-Finals
Evening Session (1900-2300 CET, 1800-2200 GMT)
Semi-Finals
Final
Draw Bracket
(1) Ross Smith v (32) Karel Sedlacek
(16) James Wade v (17) Damon Heta
(8) Gian van Veen v (25) Andrew Gilding
(9) Luke Woodhouse v (24) Dirk van Duijvenbode
(4) Niels Zonneveld v (29) Cameron Menzies
(13) Gerwyn Price v (20) Rob Cross
(5) Danny Noppert v (28) Stephen Bunting
(12) Luke Humphries v (21) Ryan Searle
(2) Wessel Nijman v (31) Martin Schindler
(15) Ryan Joyce v (18) Jermaine Wattimena
(7) Jonny Clayton v (26) Niko Springer
(10) Josh Rock v (23) Chris Dobey
(3) Krzysztof Ratajski v (30) Dave Chisnall
(14) Kevin Doets v (19) Michael van Gerwen
(6) Nathan Aspinall v (27) Cristo Reyes
(11) Luke Littler v (22) William O'Connor