Germany can even become world champion in darts
Football European Championship is paused for two days, instead in Frankfurt am Main it's about the Team World Championship in Darts. Germany is a favorite and Martin Schindler dreams of a perfect summer.
Darts World Championship in the summer? In Frankfurt? What's that then? No, you haven't missed a revolution in darts. The original, the "World Darts Championship," still takes place every year at the Alexandra Palace in London, the longing place for all darts fans. Every year, the arrows fly, before and after Christmas, with the big final just after New Year. In Frankfurt, however, it's about the WM title in the doubles this week. The World Cup of Darts takes place every year in the summer at the Frankfurt Eissporthalle. Forty nations participate with their two best players. Germany is one of the favorites for the title win.
The annual doubles tournament is the only one of its kind. Only at these four days in June do PDC stars play in teams. That's why the tournament is particularly special. From notorious individual sportspersons, a doubles team must be formed. That works well for some teams, others less so, Belgium not at all.
Who are the favorites?
No major darts nation is missing, but some top players are. Title defenders Wales go into the race depleted, as 2021 World Champion Gerwyn Price cancelled a day before the tournament due to health reasons. His partner Jonny Clayton goes into the race instead with Jim Williams, the world number 44.
England is the top-seeded nation. The number 1 and 3 in the world represent darts in Germany. The reigning world champion Luke Humphries plays together with his predecessor Michael Smith. Does this sound like an unbeatable duo? Many teams have thought so in the past, but reality was often different. Humphries and Smith have never played together before and may have to get used to each other.
The new darts superstar, World Championship finalist Luke Littler, is not yet at the Team WM. Next year, the 17-year-old should have already qualified for the English team. In this year, there were simply not enough tournaments for the talent to play his way up the rankings. England is still the favorite, especially since the Price withdrawal.
It's questionable whether the Netherlands can compete for the title. On paper, the duo seems top-notch, with three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen and Danny Noppert. The two players are very different and don't really harmonize. It's questionable if it will be enough for the big throw. In addition, the world number two van Gerwen is completely out of form.
The Scots will have a better mood at least. Peter Wright and Gary Anderson reached the final last year and want to take the last step this year. The two double world champions lack nothing in experience. Scotland comes in the World Cup of Darts with 107 years of lifelong experience. This time, the team will be led by Anderson, Wright is at least on the rising trend after some questionable performances in the past few months.
How is the mode?
The top-4 nations England, Wales, Netherlands and Scotland enter the tournament only on Saturday. The quartet is seeded for the knockout round. Today and tomorrow, the other 36 teams play in 12 triple groups to determine the other participants for the knockout round. Played in the very short format "Best of 7 Legs," it only takes four won legs for a win. At the professional level, it's the shortest format of the year. From the round of 16, it's then 8 legs, in the final 10 legs for the win.
Group A: Belgium, Singapore, PhilippinesGroup B: Northern Ireland, South Africa, SwitzerlandGroup C: Germany, New Zealand, FinlandGroup D: Australia, Japan, Hong KongGroup E: Ireland, Lithuania, TaiwanGroup F: Austria, China, GuyanaGroup G: Poland, Norway, HungaryGroup H: Czech Republic, Bahrain, IcelandGroup I: Croatia, Malaysia, CanadaGroup J: France, Latvia, DenmarkGroup K: Sweden, Spain, GibraltarGroup L: USA, Portugal, Italy
Set in the Round of 16: England (1), Wales (2), Netherlands (3), Scotland (4)
What are Germany's chances?
Germany is not among the top favorites but is not too far off either. There was a resurgence in the rankings this year. For the first time, Martin Schindler is the German number one, closely followed by Gabriel Clemens. Together, they have the best prerequisites for a strong result in Frankfurt. Last year, Schindler and Clemens knocked out the top-seeded England in the quarterfinals, but their journey ended in the semifinals against Scotland. It's not impossible that they make it to the final for the first time in World Cup history on Sunday.
"It would be a great story if we were European champions in football and team world champions in darts," said Martin Schindler in the Darts Podcast "Checkout" before the tournament. The 27-year-old lives with his family only 40 minutes by car from the venue, is looking forward to the home tournament. "It's a special feeling to represent Germany with Gabriel Clemens. We're ready to take a long journey again," Schindler announced and made it clear: "We can beat anyone. If we get our game right, all doors are open. Our biggest rival is ourselves."
First, the German duo has to get through the group stage, according to Schindler. Tonight, they face New Zealand, their strongest group opponent. If Schindler and Clemens win, they can secure a spot in the Round of 16 with a victory against Finland on Friday evening.
What to watch out for?
The Scots' 107 years of combined life experience will be significantly surpassed: Team Singapore, led by darts legend Paul Lim (70 years), has a total of 124 years. However, it is quite likely that Singapore will not make it out of the group stage, in a difficult group with the Philippines and Belgium.
Speaking of Belgium. The doubles is the most intriguing of the entire tournament. Dimitri Van den Bergh and Kim Huybrechts cannot stand each other, but they have to spend four days together. Last year, there was an incident in the first match where neither acknowledged the other. Despite this, the strong duo made it to the semifinals. It could be challenging this year because Huybrechts was injured in an altercation on the sidelines of the Belgian Darts Championship in May and had to undergo surgery. His doctors had explicitly advised him not to play again. He is doing it anyway.
Another unknown for the tournament is the ongoing European Football Championship. Although there are no games in Frankfurt during the weekend, the focus on darts is likely to be minimal on Saturday evening, as Germany faces Denmark in the UEFA Euro 2020 quarterfinals starting at 21:00. It's quite possible that Martin Schindler and Gabriel Clemens will then be scheduled for the afternoon session. Nevertheless, interest in the Team Darts World Championship remains high despite the football event. According to ntv.de, 90% of the tickets for Saturday evening have been sold.
The Team World Championship in Darts is currently taking place in Frankfurt, where the World Championship title in doubles is being contested. Among the favorites for the title win is Germany, with Michael van Gerwen and Danny Noppert representing the Dutch team. Despite their individual talents, their compatibility as a team is questionable due to their different playing styles and van Gerwen's current form.
