World Matchplay match schedule: Nathan Aspinall and Luke Humphries headline Winter Gardens opener

Aspinall will begin his title defence against debutant Luke Woodhouse when the £800,000 tournament gets underway on a week on Saturday, as the Stockport star bids to join Rod Harrington, Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen in winning back-to-back World Matchplays.

World Champion Humphries - the number one seed - will open his challenge against Germany's Ricardo Pietreczko on a star-studded opening night at Blackpool's Winter Gardens, as former finalists Gerwyn Price, Jonny Clayton and Raymond van Barneveld also feature.

The 2023 runner-up Clayton takes on five-time World Champion Van Barneveld for a place in the last 16, while 2022 finalist Price will play two-time semi-finalist Daryl Gurney in the opening match of the tournament.

Sunday's afternoon session will see 2020 champion Dimitri Van den Bergh meet German number one Martin Schindler, as Dutch number two Danny Noppert faces 2007 champion James Wade, who is making his 19th consecutive Blackpool appearance.

Former European Champion Ross Smith kicks off Sunday's action against Northern Ireland's Josh Rock, while Masters champion Stephen Bunting enters the fray against Ryan Joyce, who is returning to the event for the first time since 2020.

Sunday evening's session will be headlined by former champions Rob Cross and Peter Wright, who have been pitted against Dutch debutant Gian van Veen and former UK Open champion Andrew Gilding respectively.

Joe Cullen - a World Matchplay semi-finalist in 2023 - makes his return to the Winter Gardens stage against former World Grand Prix runner-up Brendan Dolan, while five-time quarter-finalist Dave Chisnall plays Poland's number one Krzysztof Ratajski.

The first round will conclude with a bumper evening session on Monday July 15, as three-time champion Michael van Gerwen goes head-to-head with debutant Luke Littler in one of the most highly-anticipated first round ties in World Matchplay history.

World number three Michael Smith and 2018 champion Gary Anderson will lock horns in another heavyweight showdown, while Australian number one Damon Heta plays Ryan Searle in a battle of last year's quarter-finalists.

Chris Dobey - who also reached the last eight 12 months ago - will round off the first round action when he takes on Ritchie Edhouse, one of five debutants in this year's 32-player field.

The second round will take place on Tuesday July 16 and Wednesday July 17, before the quarter-finals are staged across Thursday July 18 and Friday July 19.

The semi-finals will be held on Saturday July 20, before the final takes place on Sunday July 21, as the remaining two players compete for the £200,000 top prize and the coveted Phil Taylor Trophy.

This year's visit to the Winter Gardens will once again feature the Betfred Women's World Matchplay, which will see eight players competing in the third edition of the event on the afternoon of Sunday July 21.

The Betfred World Matchplay will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK & Ireland, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).

 

2024 Betfred World Matchplay

Saturday July 13 (1930 BST)
First Round x4
Gerwyn Price v Daryl Gurney
Jonny Clayton v Raymond van Barneveld
Luke Humphries v Ricardo Pietreczko
Nathan Aspinall v Luke Woodhouse

Sunday July 14
Afternoon Session (1300 BST)
First Round x4
Ross Smith v Josh Rock
Danny Noppert v James Wade
Dimitri Van den Bergh v Martin Schindler
Stephen Bunting v Ryan Joyce

Evening Session (1900 BST)
First Round x4
Rob Cross v Gian van Veen
Joe Cullen v Brendan Dolan
Peter Wright v Andrew Gilding
Dave Chisnall v Krzysztof Ratajski

Monday July 15 (1900 BST)
First Round x4
Damon Heta v Ryan Searle
Michael Smith v Gary Anderson
Michael van Gerwen v Luke Littler
Chris Dobey v Ritchie Edhouse

Tuesday July 16 (1900 BST)
Second Round x4

Wednesday July 17 (1900 BST)
Second Round x4

Thursday July 18 (2000 BST)
Quarter-Finals x2

Friday July 19 (2000 BST)
Quarter-Finals x2

Saturday July 20 (2000 BST)
Semi-Finals

Sunday July 21
Evening Session (2000 BST)
Betfred World Matchplay - Final