The Netherlands will field a new duo at the World Cup of Darts this week, as Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen team up for the first time. The Dutch side is seeded second, meaning they skip the group stage and enter directly at the last 16. The tournament takes place in Frankfurt, Germany.
The Netherlands have won the World Cup four times (2010, 2014, 2017, 2018), but their last title came eight years ago. Only England has more titles with five. After Raymond van Barneveld left the national team, the Dutch have frequently changed pairings. Danny Noppert and Dirk van Duijvenbode were the only duo to play together for two consecutive years (2022 and 2023).
Gian van Veen enjoyed a remarkable 2025, winning the European title with an 11-10 victory over Luke Humphries and reaching the World Championship final. He started 2026 strongly with a final at the Bahrain Darts Masters, semi-finals at the World Masters, and three finals in the first four Premier League nights. However, from March his form dipped due to kidney stones, requiring surgery. Since April, Van Veen has played fourteen PDC tournaments outside the Premier League, suffering first-match defeats eight times and producing only one average above 100. His win percentage dropped from 72% in 2025 to 55% in 2026. Despite this, he performed well at the 2025 World Cup, reaching the semi-finals with Danny Noppert, including an 8-0 win over Scotland with a 100.20 average.
Michael van Gerwen has shown signs of improvement in 2026, winning more titles than in all of 2025, including the Bahrain Darts Masters, the Nordic Darts Masters, and Players Championship 15. His match win percentage has risen from 55% last year to 65% this year, and his three-month average is 96.71, bettered by only eight players on the PDC Tour. He produced a sensational 122.34 average against Martin Schindler at Players Championship 15. However, inconsistency remains a concern, with too many matches below a 90 average. Van Gerwen has little experience in the current pairs-only format, having played just one match under those conditions due to his absence last year.
The chemistry between Van Gerwen and Van Veen will be crucial. Van Veen has spoken modestly about his teammate, stating, 'He may be behind me in the rankings right now, but I still see Michael as the Dutch number one.' The Netherlands are not the top favorites—that status belongs to England with Luke Littler and Luke Humphries—but the two countries can only meet in a potential final. Other top nations have question marks: Scotland's Gary Anderson is far from his best, Wales are without Gerwyn Price, defending champions Northern Ireland's Josh Rock and Daryl Gurney are in less form, and Germany's Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko are struggling. Belgium's Mike De Decker and Dimitri Van den Bergh are also short of form. A place in the final would grant direct qualification for the Grand Slam of Darts.
