A fresh breeze, hot arrows – that can only mean one thing: the European Tour is conquering the far north! From 10 to 12 April 2026, the state capital of Kiel will once again become the epicentre of darts for the ELTEN Safety Shoes Baltic Sea Darts Open. In the MERKUR Ostseehalle, which is normally the venue for thrilling top-level handball, the world’s best professionals will now take command at the boards.
Kiel and the surrounding region are known for their unique combination of Hanseatic serenity and passionate fan culture. The premiere of this tournament in 2023 impressively demonstrated that the north lives and breathes darts, with Dave Chisnall crowned the first champion on the fjord. Who will be the next to raise the winner’s trophy to the northern sky after Rob Cross and Gerwyn Price?
General tournament information
Date: 29 to 31 May 2026
Venue: MERKUR Ostseehalle, Kiel (Germany)
Competition: European Tour (Event No. 8)
Field of participants: 48 players
Match overview with session information
The tournament will be played in the classic knockout system. The first four rounds will be played in a best of 11 legs format, the semi-finals in a best of 13 legs format and the final in a best of 15 legs format. All legs will be played in double-out mode. Tickets for the individual sessions are available HERE.
Match schedule & sessions
Friday, 29 May 2026
Afternoon session (from 1 p.m.) – 1st round
Evening session (from 7 p.m.) – 1st round
Saturday, 30 May 2026
Afternoon session (from 1 p.m.) – 2nd round
Evening session (from 7 p.m.) – 2nd round
Sunday, 31 May 2026
Afternoon session (from 1:00 p.m.) – Round of 16
Evening session (from 7:00 p.m.) – Quarter-finals, semi-finals & final
The top-ranked players in the PDC Order of Merit will enter the tournament in the second round, while the remaining players will compete in the first round.
Prize money
In 2026, the prize money for European Tour events was significantly increased. A total of £230,000 will be distributed as follows:
- Winner: £ 35,000
- Runner-up: £ 15,000
- Semi-finalists: £ 10,000
- Quarter-finalists: £ 8,000
- Round of 16: £ 5,000
- Second round: £ 3,500
- First round: £ 2,000
The prize money counts towards the PDC Order of Merit, the ProTour Order of Merit and the European Tour Order of Merit (qualification for the European Championship).
Qualification
The field of participants is made up of various qualification routes to ensure a mix of world stars and regional talent:
Top 16 of the PDC Order of Merit: Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, Gian van Veen, Michael van Gerwen, Jonny Clayton, James Wade, Stephen Bunting, Gerwyn Price, Josh Rock, Gary Anderson, Danny Noppert, Ryan Searle, Chris Dobey, Nathan Aspinall, Ross Smith, Martin Schindler
Top 16 of the ProTour Order of Merit: Wessel Nijman, Jermaine Wattimena, Damon Heta, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Luke Woodhouse, Niko Springer, Niels Zonneveld, Krzysztof Ratajski, Daryl Gurney, William O’Connor, Joe Cullen, Ryan Joyce, Kevin Doets, Andrew Gilding, Dave Chisnall, Cameron Menzies
Tour Card Holder Qualifier: Alan Soutar, Max Hopp, Ricky Evans, Lukas Wenig, James Hurrell, Jeffrey de Zwaan, Ian White, Jimmy van Schie, Sebastian Bialecki, Justin Hood
Host Nation Qualifier: 4 places for players from Germany.
Nordic & Baltic Qualifier: Teemu Harju
East Europe Qualifier: Nándor Major
TV broadcast
Fans can watch the entire tournament live. The ELTEN Safety Shoes Baltic Sea Darts Open will be broadcast on the following channels:
PDC TV:
International live stream for subscribers (original commentary).
SOCIAL MEDIA:
Current scores and highlights can be found on the PDC Europe channels.
DAZN:
Broadcasts all sessions live in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in German.
Previous winners
- 2025: Gerwyn Price 8:3 Gary Anderson
- 2024: Rob Cross 8:6 Luke Humphries
- 2023: Dave Chisnall 8:5 Luke Humphries
