Luke Humphries out of European Championship darts boosting Luke Littler’s title hopes

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World number two Luke Humphries has been forced to pull out of this weekend’s European Championship after being diagnosed with gastroenteritis.

The player was scheduled to launch his campaign in Dortmund against Ryan Searle on Thursday night, but will now miss the event. He will be replaced in the draw by Belgium’s Kim Huybrechts.

A PDC statement read: “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 now take on Ryan Searle on Thursday evening, with the winner set to face Danny Noppert or Stephen Bunting on Saturday.”

The absence of Humphries could enhance Luke Littler’s bid to complete a full set of major tournament victories. Following a prolific two years on tour, the European Championship remains the only major title currently missing from the teenager’s record.

The European Championship is one of the PDC’s leading televised events, bringing together the top performers from the European Tour circuit.

The 32-player tournament follows a knockout format, with the opening round played over the first two days before the second round and quarter-finals take place across the weekend. The semi-finals and final are scheduled for Sunday.

Littler opens his tournament against William O’Connor on Friday night, with the teenager likely to face a partisan German crowd in Dortmund.

Meanwhile, defending champion Gian van Veen headlines Thursday’s schedule as he takes on Andrew Gilding. Van Veen will be aiming to retain his title, while Searle must now prepare for a different opponent following Humphries’ withdrawal.