PDC announce major change for World Darts Championship in landmark moment

The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) mentioned the impact of Kenyan 'trailblazer' David Munyua as they announced the international qualifying structure for the 2026/27 World Darts Championship.

Back in December, Munyua pulled off one of the biggest upsets in World Championship history.

The 30-year-old, who also works as a full-time veterinarian, became the first Kenyan player to compete in the annual tournament before beating overwhelming favourite Mike De Decker on December 18.

To put his achievement into further perspective, Munyua only started playing darts three years ago, when his friend introduced him to the sport, and had never left Africa ahead of his Ally Pally debut.

"I’ve never experienced temperatures like this," he told Darts News before his win over De Decker. "I can tell you: it was a very long flight."

David Munyua beat Mike De Decker in a huge upset at the World Darts Championship. Image credit: Getty

The Kenyan failed to progress in the tournament after a second-round defeat to Kevin Doets, but his impact has already left a lasting legacy, with the PDC confirming that two spots will be awarded to players from Africa for the first time.

The two places will be awarded through the African Darts Group, with a Northern African Qualifier and a Southern African Qualifier determining the two spots.

It was also announced that the World Darts Championship would welcome a 128-player field, with a total prize fund of £5 million on offer.

In total, the top 40 players on the PDC Order of Merit will qualify directly alongside the top 40 non-qualified players from the ProTour Rankings, while the remaining 48 spots will be allocated to international qualifiers.

"This includes players from the PDC’s secondary and global affiliate tours, and the landmark inclusion of two guaranteed spots for African players at the World Darts Championship, following Kenyan trailblazer David Munyua’s exploits at Alexandra Palace," a statement from the PDC added.

Munyua became a cult hero at the Worlds. Image credit: Getty

The PDC also confirmed five spaces will be awarded to the highest-ranked players on the PDC Asian Tour, and two spots are given to the Asian Championship finalists, whilst the PDC China Champion and qualifiers in India and Japan will also receive a place each.

Five further spots are given to players competing on the Championship Darts Corporation circuit, with three spots up for grabs for players in the Nordic and Baltic region.

Like in previous editions, four women will be guaranteed a place at Alexandra Palace, with the Women’s World Matchplay winner and the top three players on the Women’s Series Rankings also qualifying.

The top three players on the Development Tour and Challenge Tour Rankings and the PDC World Youth Champion will secure a spot, whilst a minimum of two players from the Tour Card Holder Qualifier will earn a place.