Luke Littler to miss Players Championship Finals as Anderson and Aspinall face last-chance battle

Luke Littler will not defend his Players Championship Finals title, while Gary Anderson and Nathan Aspinall face a tense final week of qualifying for Minehead.

Littler is absent from the entry lists for Players Championship 33 and 34 in Leicester on Wednesday and Thursday. With only those two tournaments remaining, he cannot reach the top 64 who qualify for the Finals.

Anderson, Aspinall, Josh Rock and Raymond van Barneveld are also outside the qualifying places, but all four have entered the Leicester double-header.

Why Luke Littler will miss the Players Championship Finals

Qualification is decided by prize money earned in the Players Championship series. Neither a player’s position in the main world rankings nor winning the previous year’s Finals guarantees a place.

Littler sits 128th on the qualifying list, having collected £10,500. His absence from the last two events ends his chances of returning to the tournament he won for the first time last November.

The PDC entry announcement, reproduced by the Australian Darts Association, lists Littler among the absent Tour Card holders.

It means Minehead will have a different champion when the tournament takes place from 27–29 November.

Anderson within reach as Aspinall and Rock chase bigger returns

Anderson is 68th on £29,750, leaving him £2,000 behind Wesley Plaisier in the final qualifying position. Aspinall, Rock and Van Barneveld have more ground to make up.

Player	Position	Prize money	Gap to current 64th place
Wesley Plaisier	64th	£31,750	Current cut-off
Gary Anderson	68th	£29,750	£2,000 behind
Nathan Aspinall	78th	£26,500	£5,250 behind
Josh Rock	80th	£26,000	£5,750 behind
Raymond van Barneveld	81st	£25,750	£6,000 behind
Peter Wright	86th	£23,750	£8,000 behind

Standings before Players Championship 33, as reported in Dartsnews’ qualification update on 1 November.

Those gaps are a starting point, not a qualification target. Plaisier and the players around him can also add prize money, so reaching £31,750 will not necessarily be enough by Thursday evening.

For Anderson, the smaller deficit offers a more manageable route. Aspinall and Rock need to pass a larger group of players as well as make up the money.

Last year’s finalists could both be absent

Aspinall’s position raises the possibility that neither player from the 2025 final will return this month.

Littler beat him 11–8 in last year’s decider, averaging 103.33 to claim the trophy. Aspinall had threatened a comeback from 8–4 down, closing to 9–8 before Littler won the final two legs.

As the PDPA’s report of the 2025 final records, Aspinall reached that match by beating Rock in the quarter-finals and Jermaine Wattimena in the semi-finals.

He now needs a strong finish to the floor season simply to earn another opportunity at Minehead.

Price and De Decker still have work to do

Gerwyn Price begins the week inside the top 64, in 58th place on £34,000. Mike De Decker is closer to the line, sitting 61st with £33,250.

Their positions give them an advantage over the chasing group, but early exits would leave them watching results elsewhere. Wednesday will establish what each player needs from the final event.

When are the final Players Championship events?

Players Championship 33 takes place at Leicester’s Mattioli Arena on Wednesday 4 November, followed by Players Championship 34 on Thursday 5 November.

Both tournaments start at 1pm GMT, with PDCTV streaming matches from four boards. Each event has a £15,000 first prize.

Our coverage of the previous double-header in Den Bosch follows the earlier stage of the qualification race.

The PDPA calendar also confirms that Leicester hosts the Grand Slam Tour Card Holder qualifier on Friday 6 November. That is a separate qualification event and cannot rescue a player’s Minehead hopes.

For the Players Championship Finals, Thursday is the deadline. Littler’s absence is already settled; the remaining question is how many other leading names will join him.

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