The fifth staging of the £40,000 event will be held on the afternoon of Sunday July 26 at the Winter Gardens, televised live on Sky Sports and through the PDC's global broadcast partners.
The eight-player field features the top eight players on the rolling 12-month PDC Women’s Series rankings, with Beau Greaves set to headline.
However, Lancashire veteran Ashton is eyeing back-to-back titles at the Empress Ballroom, following her dramatic deciding-leg victory over Fallon Sherrock in last year’s showpiece.
The four-time Lakeside Women’s champion kicks off her title defence against Welsh number one Rhian O’Sullivan, who will make her third Women’s World Matchplay appearance on Sunday.
Despite Ashton's success in 2025, top seed Greaves is the overwhelming favourite - 1/7 with title sponsors Betfred - to lift a third Women’s World Matchplay crown following an unprecedented 12-month spell that has seen her elevate her game to a different level.
The 22-year-old enjoyed a staggering 114-match winning run on the PDC Women’s Series circuit from April 2025 to March 2026, which saw her claim 17 consecutive titles in the process.
Greaves has also performed magnificently in her first year as a Tour Card Holder, prevailing at Players Championship 11 in April to become the first woman to win a PDC ranking title.
“Winning a ProTour so quickly was a shock to me,” conceded Greaves, who begins her title challenge against Finland’s Kirsi Viinikainen.
Viinikainen – who also faced Greaves in the quarter-finals last year - confirmed her qualification in last-gasp fashion, with a run to May’s Event 11 showpiece proving decisive in sealing her Women's World Matchplay return.
Elsewhere, 2022 champion Sherrock will go head-to-head with debutant Deta Hedman in a battle between darting royalty at the Winter Gardens.
Sherrock was awarded an MBE for her services to darts in the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours, while Hedman was awarded an OBE in last year’s King's Honours List for services to darts and charity.
Hedman – the veteran in this year’s field at the age of 66 - ended her six-year wait for a PDC Women’s Series title in May, having also celebrated her maiden Lakeside title back in December.
Sherrock, meanwhile, has featured in each of the last two Women’s World Matchplay finals, succumbing to Greaves and Ashton in those respective clashes, and she’s determined to return to winning ways in Blackpool.
The afternoon’s other quarter-final will see Gemma Hayter face Sweden’s Vicky Pruim, with either Greaves or Viinikainen awaiting the winner in the semi-finals.
Despite losing out to Sherrock on debut 12 months ago, Hayter has featured in two Women’s Series finals and a further four semi-finals in 2026, underlining her status as one of the sport’s most consistent operators.
Pruim – one of two debutants in this year’s event – became the first Swedish player to win a PDC Women’s Series title in May, where she ironically defeated Hayter to celebrate a landmark triumph.
The semi-finals and final will also take place in a bumper afternoon session at the Winter Gardens, with the winner set to qualify for the 2026 Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts and the 2026/27 Paddy Power World Darts Championship.
2026 Betfred Women's World Matchplay
Sunday July 26 (1300 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Beau Greaves v Kirsi Viinikainen
Gemma Hayter v Vicky Pruim
Lisa Ashton v Rhian O’Sullivan
Fallon Sherrock v Deta Hedman
Semi-Finals
Greaves/Viinikainen v Hayter/Pruim
Ashton/O’Sullivan v Sherrock/Hedman
Final
v
Format
Quarter-Finals - Best of nine legs
Semi-Finals - Best of nine legs
Final - Best of 11 legs
Prize Money
Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £8,000
Semi-Finalists: £4,500
Quarter-Finalists: £2,000
Total: £40,000