They are Back!!!
Yes, indeed, last year they failed to qualify for the World Championship because they had dropped low in the rankings and lost their Tour Card at the end of 2024.
Neither of them could regain it in Qualifying School 2025.
This year, Mervyn King qualified via the Challenge Tour and Simon Whitlock via the Australian ANZ Premier League.
King won a tournament on the Challenge Tour and reached two finals, occasionally moved up to the Pro Tour, and even made it to the quarterfinals of a Players Championship - so he hasn't given up on darts, nor has he forgotten how to play.
Whitlock won the ANZ Premier League - a newly introduced tournament series over eight league night in Australia and New Zealand - as well an impressive achievement.
King certainly will have a chance against Ian White in the first round, and he wouldn't be completely without a chance in the second round against Rob Cross or Cor Dekker either. Whitlock could face a tough challenge in the first round against Connor Scutt, who is not an easy opponent. In the second round, Gary Anderson would likely be waiting for him.
Whitlock has already announced that he will not participate in Qualifying School in January. King, on the other hand, remains silent.
Also returning to the World Championship is former German number one Max Hopp, who made his first appearance on the Alexandra Palace stage at the 2013 PDC World Championship and subsequently competed in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2022, Hopp had to hand back his Tour Card due to a lack of results and was only able to reclaim it at Qualifying School in 2025. His results in 2025 were sufficient to qualify via the Pro Tour Order of Merit. Hopp was once considered a great hope for German darts, reaching the third round of the PDC World Championship twice and the fifth round of the UK Open in both 2019 and 2021. He reached the semifinals of the European Championship in 2018 and, together with Gabriel Clemens, the semifinals of the PDC World Cup in 2020. In 2015, he won the PDC Youth World Championship (against Nathan Aspinall) - becoming the youngest player ever to do so in the times before Luke Littler.
In 2018, he became the first German player to win a European Tour event - the German Darts Open. In 2019, Hopp received the PDC Young Player of the Year award for his performances the previous year. By 2020, he was ranked 23rd in the PDC Order of Merit, but his performances subsequently declined, culminating in the loss of his Tour Card. Although he returned to the Pro Tour in 2025, he has yet to truly establish himself, and significant success remains elusive. After a few years' hiatus, he will finally be back on the stage of Alexandra Palace, where he will face Martin Lukeman in the evening session on December 15th. Since Lukeman is currently far from his best, Hopp has a chance to advance. In the second round, he would face either Luke Woodhouse or Boris Krcmar.
However, another player has also made a totally unexpected comeback - the Spaniard Cristo Reyes, who had completely disappeared from the scene during the Corona pandemic. Reyes held a Tour Card from 2015 to 2021 and qualified for the PDC World Championship seven times. In his very first appearance at Alexandra Palace - having secured his place in the World Championship via the Iberian Qualifier - he advanced from the preliminary round to the third round, defeating Christian Perez, Wes Newton, and Kevin Painter along the way before being defeated by Gary Anderson. He was the first Spaniard to reach the third round of a PDC World Championship. In his first European Championship, he defeated Max Hop 6-2 with an average of 100.69. Reyes also reached the third round of the PDC World Championship again in 2019.
Reyes hadn't been as strong in the years leading up to the pandemic, and when it started, he didn't play a single PDC tournament. As a result, he had to return his Tour Card at the end of 2021 and disappeared from the scene after Qualifying School 2022 and a few subsequent Challenge Tour events. Now he has reappeared just as surprisingly as he had vanished. His performance in the Qualifier was convincing, and he secured a place in Qualifying School 2026 along with Toni Alcinas, Ricardo Perez, and Jesus Noguera. Reyes could therefore make another attempt to return to the PDC circuit.
Reyes will play against Gian van Veen in the evening session on the second day of the World Championship. If he can truly return to his former form, it won't be a pleasant experience for van Veen, but potentially an entertaining match for the spectators. In the second round, the winner of the match will either Alan Soutar of Teemu Harju - to be sure an easier challenge.
Neither of them could regain it in Qualifying School 2025.
This year, Mervyn King qualified via the Challenge Tour and Simon Whitlock via the Australian ANZ Premier League.
King won a tournament on the Challenge Tour and reached two finals, occasionally moved up to the Pro Tour, and even made it to the quarterfinals of a Players Championship - so he hasn't given up on darts, nor has he forgotten how to play.
Whitlock won the ANZ Premier League - a newly introduced tournament series over eight league night in Australia and New Zealand - as well an impressive achievement.
King certainly will have a chance against Ian White in the first round, and he wouldn't be completely without a chance in the second round against Rob Cross or Cor Dekker either. Whitlock could face a tough challenge in the first round against Connor Scutt, who is not an easy opponent. In the second round, Gary Anderson would likely be waiting for him.
Whitlock has already announced that he will not participate in Qualifying School in January. King, on the other hand, remains silent.
Also returning to the World Championship is former German number one Max Hopp, who made his first appearance on the Alexandra Palace stage at the 2013 PDC World Championship and subsequently competed in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2022, Hopp had to hand back his Tour Card due to a lack of results and was only able to reclaim it at Qualifying School in 2025. His results in 2025 were sufficient to qualify via the Pro Tour Order of Merit. Hopp was once considered a great hope for German darts, reaching the third round of the PDC World Championship twice and the fifth round of the UK Open in both 2019 and 2021. He reached the semifinals of the European Championship in 2018 and, together with Gabriel Clemens, the semifinals of the PDC World Cup in 2020. In 2015, he won the PDC Youth World Championship (against Nathan Aspinall) - becoming the youngest player ever to do so in the times before Luke Littler.
In 2018, he became the first German player to win a European Tour event - the German Darts Open. In 2019, Hopp received the PDC Young Player of the Year award for his performances the previous year. By 2020, he was ranked 23rd in the PDC Order of Merit, but his performances subsequently declined, culminating in the loss of his Tour Card. Although he returned to the Pro Tour in 2025, he has yet to truly establish himself, and significant success remains elusive. After a few years' hiatus, he will finally be back on the stage of Alexandra Palace, where he will face Martin Lukeman in the evening session on December 15th. Since Lukeman is currently far from his best, Hopp has a chance to advance. In the second round, he would face either Luke Woodhouse or Boris Krcmar.
However, another player has also made a totally unexpected comeback - the Spaniard Cristo Reyes, who had completely disappeared from the scene during the Corona pandemic. Reyes held a Tour Card from 2015 to 2021 and qualified for the PDC World Championship seven times. In his very first appearance at Alexandra Palace - having secured his place in the World Championship via the Iberian Qualifier - he advanced from the preliminary round to the third round, defeating Christian Perez, Wes Newton, and Kevin Painter along the way before being defeated by Gary Anderson. He was the first Spaniard to reach the third round of a PDC World Championship. In his first European Championship, he defeated Max Hop 6-2 with an average of 100.69. Reyes also reached the third round of the PDC World Championship again in 2019.
Reyes hadn't been as strong in the years leading up to the pandemic, and when it started, he didn't play a single PDC tournament. As a result, he had to return his Tour Card at the end of 2021 and disappeared from the scene after Qualifying School 2022 and a few subsequent Challenge Tour events. Now he has reappeared just as surprisingly as he had vanished. His performance in the Qualifier was convincing, and he secured a place in Qualifying School 2026 along with Toni Alcinas, Ricardo Perez, and Jesus Noguera. Reyes could therefore make another attempt to return to the PDC circuit.
Reyes will play against Gian van Veen in the evening session on the second day of the World Championship. If he can truly return to his former form, it won't be a pleasant experience for van Veen, but potentially an entertaining match for the spectators. In the second round, the winner of the match will either Alan Soutar of Teemu Harju - to be sure an easier challenge.