2026 International Darts Open

2026 International Darts Open
Tournament information
Dates	12–21 June 2026
Venue	Alexandra Palace
Location	London, England
Organisation(s)	International Darts Federation (IDF)
Format	Sets Final – best of 11 sets
Prize fund	$2,500,000
Winner's share	$500,000

The 2026 International Darts Open is an upcoming professional darts tournament organised by the International Darts Federation (IDF). The event was officially announced on 3 March 2026 and is scheduled to take place from 12 to 21 June 2026, with competition held over ten consecutive days at Alexandra Palace in London, England.

The tournament will be staged under IDF sanction and will form part of the 2026 IDF darts season. Apex Energy was confirmed as the tournament’s title sponsor, marking the company’s first involvement as a title partner for a major international darts event. The competition will feature a 128-player knockout field drawn from multiple qualification routes, with all prize money earned contributing toward the IDF Order of Merit and influencing qualification and seeding positions for future IDF-sanctioned tournaments.

Overview

Venue

On 10 March 2026, the International Darts Federation confirmed that the tournament will be held at Alexandra Palace in London, England.

Alexandra Palace was selected following an internal venue review process that assessed spectator capacity, broadcast infrastructure, player facilities, and international accessibility. Organisers cited the venue’s proven ability to host large-scale, multi-session darts events and its strong historical association with televised professional darts as key factors in the decision, with the 2026 International Darts Open marking the first time the tournament has been staged at the venue.

Format

The tournament format and match structure were confirmed on 1 April 2026.

All matches will be played as games of 501 using a set format, with match lengths increasing progressively as the tournament advances. Early-round matches will be contested over shorter set distances to accommodate the large field size, while later rounds will feature extended formats designed to reward consistency and stamina, culminating in a best-of-11-sets final. As with all IDF-sanctioned events, all matches must be won by finishing on a double, with standard tie-break procedures applied where necessary.

Prize money

On 1 April 2026, the IDF confirmed a total prize fund of $2,500,000, with all prize money counting toward the IDF Order of Merit.

The tournament winner will receive $500,000, with the remaining prize money distributed across the field based on finishing position. Organisers stated that the prize structure was designed to provide meaningful financial returns across all rounds of the competition, particularly for players progressing beyond the early stages, with a full prize money breakdown scheduled for publication closer to the start of the tournament.

Players

Field composition

The 128-player field was formally confirmed on 18 April 2026.

Qualification route	Players
IDF Order of Merit (Top 32)	32
Pro Tour qualifiers	48
International qualifiers	32
Host nation qualifiers	16
Total	128

Seeding

On 22 April 2026, the IDF confirmed the seeding system for the tournament.

The top 32 players on the IDF Order of Merit following the April 2026 rankings cutoff will be seeded and placed in fixed positions within the draw. Seeded players will be arranged to avoid meeting one another until the later stages of the competition, in line with IDF regulations governing major televised events. The remaining 96 players will be drawn at random, subject to standard geographic and tour-based separation rules designed to prevent early-round clustering of qualifiers from the same pathway.

Draw and schedule

The draw procedure and session schedule style were announced on 25 April 2026.

The tournament draw will be conducted as a full random knockout draw, with seeded players allocated to predetermined positions and unseeded players drawn into the remaining slots. The draw will be made in advance of the tournament and published in full, with no reseeding applied at any stage. Organisers confirmed that the tournament schedule will follow a multi-session daily format, with afternoon and evening sessions used throughout the event to accommodate the large field size and international broadcast requirements, while later rounds will be staged across extended single-session match blocks to ensure competitive balance and consistent playing conditions.