Motomu Sakai and Brody Klinge are among the eight new international qualifiers to have confirmed their place at the 2026/27 Paddy Power World Darts Championship last weekend. Sakai – who enigmatically starred at last year’s World Championship – will return to Alexandra Palace after finishing second on the PDC Asian Tour rankings, following the conclusion […]
Motomu Sakai and Brody Klinge are among the eight new international qualifiers to have confirmed their place at the 2026/27 Paddy Power World Darts Championship last weekend.
Sakai – who enigmatically starred at last year’s World Championship – will return to Alexandra Palace after finishing second on the PDC Asian Tour rankings, following the conclusion of all 28 events this year.
The rankings were topped by Ryuta Arihara, who will make his debut at Alexandra Palace having claimed five of the 28 titles on offer this year.
Japanese duo Arihara and Sakai will be joined by 2022 PDC Asian Champion Christian Perez, Japanese World Cup star Haruki Muramatsu and Hong Kong’s Lok Yin Lee, who rounded out the top five places in the Asian Tour rankings.
The 2026 PDC Asian Championship’s winner and runner-up also claimed Alexandra Palace spots, with Nebrida winning his maiden title to seal a fifth straight World Championship outing.
The Filipino will be joined by runner-up Kam Weng Chen, who is set to make history as the first player from Macau to star at the World Championship.
Chen – who entered the Asian Championship ranked 55th on the final Asian Tour standings – produced an incredible run to the final, defeating the likes of Sakai and two-time World Championship appearance maker Ryusei Azemoto en route.
Finally, Klinge sealed an Alexandra Palace debut by claiming top spot on the Australian Darts Association Tour, fending off Raymond Smith after a dramatic final weekend of action.
The Australian Darts Masters runner-up won an incredible nine titles across 24 events, adding World Championship qualification to a ground-breaking year for the Melbourne-based star.
Further International Qualifiers will be confirmed over the coming weeks, with seven more players set to confirm an Alexandra Palace spot by the end of September.
The winner of the Steel Darts Japan Tour – currently led by Sakai – will be confirmed on September 23. If Sakai secures top spot, then he would claim the Steel Darts Japan Champion qualifier spot, and his Asian Tour ranking place would be passed down to Man Lok Leung in seventh, as sixth-placed Nebrida has already qualified as PDC Asian Champion.
The PDC Winmau Challenge Tour concludes on September 27, with the top three players assured of an Alexandra Palace place, while the winner and runner-up from the PDC Nordic & Baltic ProTour – which concludes on the same day – will also earn World Championship spots.
The winner of the PDC UK & Ireland Tour Card Holder & Associate Member Qualifier takes place on Monday September 28, with the winner also earning an illustrious Alexandra Palace outing.
Entries for further International Qualifiers ahead of the 2026/27 World Darts Championship are now open, including the UK & Ireland Tour Card Holder & Associate Member Qualifier on Monday September 28.
The Netherlands & Belgium Qualifier will be held on Saturday November 14, with the South-East Europe Qualifier taking place a fortnight later on Saturday November 28.
The Mediterranean Qualifier will take place from November 6-8, while the Czechia Qualifier is set to be held in Prague on Sunday November 29.
Entries for the following International Qualifiers are available at www.pdcplayers.com.
– UK & Ireland Tour Card Holder & Associate Member Qualifier (Monday September 28)
– Netherlands & Belgium Qualifier (Saturday November 14)
– Czechia Qualifier (Sunday November 29)
– South-East Europe Qualifier (Saturday November 28)
New players must register their details at this link. Following your registration, you will receive an email to confirm that you are available to enter tournaments, and at this stage you can login to make your entry to the relevant events. This verification may take up to 48 hours.