Luke Humphries forced into last-minute European Championship withdrawal as replacement named
Luke Humphries has been forced to pull out of the European Championship due to illness, hours before he was due to take on Ryan Searle in his first round match in Dortmund.
World number two Humphries was seeded 12th in the draw for the season-ending European Tour event, and would have faced Searle on Thursday evening.
But the PDC have announced that 'Cool Hand' has been diagnosed with gastroenteritis, with Kim Huybrechts - the next highest-ranked player in the European Tour Order of Merit - confirmed as his replacement.
Luke Humphries out, Kim Huybrechts in for European Championship
A statement from the PDC reads: "Under PDC rules, Humphries will be directly replaced in the field by Kim Huybrechts, the highest-ranked non-qualified player in the 2026 European Tour rankings.
"Belgium's Huybrechts will take on Ryan Searle on Thursday evening, with the winner set to face Danny Noppert or Stephen Bunting on Saturday."
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Humphries had been tipped as one of the favourites to win the event in Dortmund, with his low seeding position down to the fact that he only entered five of the 15 European Tour events this season.
But his absence will now hand favourite Luke Littler, who is seeded 11th, another advantage in his quest to win the only PDC major title he is yet to lift during his career.
Littler's chances of the year 'clean sweep' of winning every televised PDC major was ended by Jonny Clayton at the World Series Finals, but he will see the European Championship as the perfect opportunity to return to winning ways.
'The Nuke' was knocked out by James Wade in the last 16 stage of their 2025 clash, with Littler having lost in the first round to Andrew Gilding in 2024.
Littler faces William O'Connor in round one in Dortmund, with his second round clash - if he makes it that far - potentially pitting him up against Nathan Aspinall once again.
Why Luke Humphries could be replaced before European Championship
The PDC's rules and regulations differ depending on the event in question, with the European Championship classed differently as the entry list is pre-determined based on a separate ranking system.
Had Humphries withdrawn from the event once the first match had gotten underway, his first round opponent Searle would have received a bye - but Huybrechts has been allowed to take the place of 'Cool Hand'.
"If a player withdraws or is otherwise removed after the schedule of play has been announced, the next non-qualified player from the relevant Ranking List through which the withdrawn player qualified, will be invited to participate in the Event and will take the place of the withdrawn player directly in the draw with no alteration made to seedings," the regulation reads.
Topics: Luke Humphries, Darts
Ryan Smart