Darts Weekly: Predicting the next five first-time major winners

In his latest Odds Now column, Darts Now’s Connor Cain gives us his predictions for the next five PDC stars to pick up a first-time major win.

The last 12 months have seen both Luke Littler and Luke Humphries monopolise the sport’s major trophies.

Since ‘The Nuke’ captured the Grand Slam of Darts last November, the pair have shared the trophies amongst themselves – four for Littler and three for Humphries.

Prior to that, Mike De Decker and Ritchie Edhouse shocked the darting world by capturing the World Grand Prix and European Championship, respectively, to become two of the unlikeliest major champions in recent memory.

Darts was once viewed as an old man’s game, but the younger generation is beginning to stamp its authority, and the next few years could see more young blood lift the sport’s biggest prizes.

In reverse order, here are the five PDC pros I deem likeliest ​to imminently capture their maiden major trophy.

Predicting the next five first-time PDC Major winners

5. Martin Schindler

The German Number One has had his struggles on television, but has been on a clear upward trajectory over the last couple of years.

In April 2024, Schindler captured his first-ever senior PDC Title on the Euro Tour, which was followed by another in September.

He’s added a further two titles this year and is on the cusp of entering the world’s top 16 for the first time, less than £15k short of Peter Wright.

We’ve seen before how beneficial the European Tour can be as a gateway to TV success.

Luke Humphries captured five titles and reached nine finals in Europe before lifting his first major, which opened the floodgates for further major titles.

Schindler still has work to do to establish himself as a threat on TV and has a disappointing return of two major quarter-finals, both in 2023.

Still, the 29-year-old has proven he can tangle with the game’s top dogs, and if he can bring his Euro Tour game to the biggest stages, he’s more than capable of becoming a major champion.

4. Dirk van Duijvenbode

It looked like Dirk van Duijvenbode was ready to make the step up to the game’s upper echelons when he reached the World Grand Prix final on debut in 2020.

He was the runner-up in the World Series of Darts Finals a couple of years later, and his barrage of monster averages made him prolific on the floor, picking up six Players Championship titles.

The Aubergenius looked to be flying high before a serious shoulder injury nearly ended his career two years ago.

Van Duijvenbode went from being one of the game’s heaviest scorers to barely being able to throw a dart, opening up on the severity of the injury in an emotional interview with Darts Now earlier this year.

Thankfully, those issues appear to be put to bed with the enigmatic Dutchman rediscovering his heavy artillery that has propelled him back into the world’s top 32 despite previous concerns about losing his PDC Tour Card.

He made the quarter-final of the European Championship last year and the final four in Minehead just a few weeks later.

If he can stay fit, I expect the Aubergine farmer to quickly reclaim a spot in the top 16 and consistently reach the latter stages of major tournaments.

3. Wessel Nijman

Another Dutchman on this list who has come through adversity to compete on darts’ biggest stages.

Wessel Nijman was touted as one of the game’s greatest youth players in his teens and looked set to become a superstar.

In 2020, however, Nijman was suspended by the Darts Regulation Authority following an investigation into match-fixing and was subsequently handed a five-year ban (two and a half years suspended) after admitting the charge.

To the 25-year-old’s credit, he’s not hidden from his actions and has spoken candidly about them in a bid to help other younger players who may be under pressure.

Since returning to competitive darts, Nijman has picked up a handful of Development Tour titles and a senior PDC Title with his Players Championship triumph last year.

He got the better of Luke Littlier more often than not in their Development Tour days and has won two-thirds of the meetings between the pair.

Whilst he’s yet to make a serious impact on TV, the bookmakers have taken notice of the young Dutchman’s potential and made him sixth favourite for the 2025 World Championship – much to the chagrin of his opponent Joe Cullen, who stormed out of his press conference following his victory over Nijman at Ally Pally.

It stands to reason that if one continues to produce world-class darts, then results will follow.

Nijman’s numbers are consistently in three figures, and if that continues, results on the big TV stages will come.

His ability to bounce back from his lowest point five years ago shows he has the mental resilience needed to fight at the very top of the sport.

2. Gian Van Veen

Gian van Veen completes a hat-trick of Dutch talent on this list as the Netherlands’ conveyor belt has rolled off an array of superstars to ease the pressure on icon Michael van Gerwen when representing the country.

At 23 years old, Van Veen is the youngest person on this list with perhaps one of the highest ceilings.

Competing at the youth level, he was a title hoover with nine Development Tour titles and the most recent World Youth Championship.

That winning mentality translated to the Pro Tour this year with his first senior PDC Title at Players Championship 06.

Unlike some on this list, GVV already has a pedigree on TV. He reached the semi-final of the European Championship in 2023, where he beat compatriot Michael van Gerwen and has made two major quarter-finals this year.

Luke Humphries’ World Matchplay title reign ended in the opening round to the young Dutchman this year, and he has consistently produced sensational darts on every stage he’s played on.

At the weekend, he whitewashed Gerwyn Price in Prague – the first time the Iceman has been whitewashed on the Euro Tour in a decade.

Van Veen clearly has all the darting attributes to be a major winner in this sport, but his maturity and mentality impress me the most.

I’ve had the pleasure of speaking to him many times in the past few years, and even at 23, you will struggle to find someone as calm, level-headed and composed as him.

He doesn’t get flustered after a bad defeat and has an uncanny ability to take the positives from even the most painful situations.

This year, Van Veen has certainly stepped up a level, and with the business end of the year dawning on us, don’t be surprised to see him lift a big one very soon.

1. Josh Rock

We all knew that Josh Rock would top this list, didn’t we?

Ever since announcing his arrival to the world with his iconic nine-darter against Michael van Gerwen at the Grand Slam in 2022, big things have been expected from this boy – and he’s delivering.

The Northern Irishman has won numerous titles on the floor, won on the European Tour, and earlier this year, finally won on the big stage.

A few months ago, he and Daryl Gurney were victorious in an epic final against Wales to bring the World Cup of Darts home to Northern Ireland for the first time.

Some may class that as his first major trophy, but as it’s not individual and for the purposes of this list, I don’t and nor do many of the players, in fairness.

Nevertheless, his tsunami of 180s and clutch finishing in that tournament prove that he is ready to ascend to darts’ greatest heights.

In Minehead earlier this year, he vowed to win a major soon when speaking to Darts Now and came close at the recent World Matchplay – narrowly losing a classic to Luke Littler after dumping out Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price.

He’s also reached the final of the last two Euro Tours, losing to Humphries and Littler, who sit at world number one and two, respectively.

Rock is a very special young man, and there’s no if he will win a major trophy, it’s when.

At the time of writing, he’s the third favourite to lift the 2026 World Championship behind the two Lukes and with his performances this year, justifiably so.