{"id":957807,"date":"2026-05-13T20:44:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T20:44:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/957807\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T20:44:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T20:44:28","slug":"preview-premier-league-darts-2026-night-15-in-birmingham-van-gerwen-price-humphries-van-veen-desperate-for-points-in-play-off-hunt-with-table-toppers-clashing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/957807\/","title":{"rendered":"Preview Premier League Darts 2026 Night 15 in Birmingham: Van Gerwen-Price, Humphries, van Veen desperate for points in play-off hunt with table toppers clashing"},"content":{"rendered":"

The O2 is coming closer into sight with the 2026 Premier
\nLeague Darts set to come to a fiery climax over the next few weeks. Birmingham is
\nthe host city for night 15<\/a> with more twists and turns predicted with the
\nplay-off race still very much on.<\/p>\n

Night 15 will be hosted in the West Midlands with Birmingham
\na fitting location to host eight of the best darters in the world. Just two more
\nnights remain ahead of the highly anticipated finals night, meaning any points
\nup for grabs will be ferociously fought over.<\/p>\n

The Utilita Arena Birmingham has been a staple on the
\nPremier League Darts<\/a> schedule since 2007 and has been played there every year aside
\nfrom 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.The first two years of the new knockout format was dominated
\nby one man. Jonny Clayton was the first nightly winner in Birmingham, thrashing
\nMichael Smith 6-1 before edging past an impressive Peter Wright 6-4 with the
\ntwo-time world champion averaging over 107. James Wade was battered 6-1 in the final
\nto cap off a very impressive display. \u2018The Ferret\u2019 repeated the success a year
\nlater. Nathan Aspinall (6-4) and Michael van Gerwen<\/a> (6-3) were bypassed with a
\ntight final against Wright going the Welshman\u2019s way (6-5).A new winner was guaranteed in Birmingham in 2024. Van Gerwen
\nwas the one to take advantage, getting the better of Aspinall (6-4), Smith
\n(6-4) before the debutant Luke Littler<\/a> was dealt with (6-3). The last edition
\nwas dominated by Littler. The 2024 champion edged out Stephen Bunting (6-5),
\nNathan Aspinall (6-5) before having defeated van Gerwen 6-4 in the final to
\nrecord a historic fifth nightly win, an unprecedented achievement in this format.
\nNow already having beaten that target, a new high tally of nightly wins could
\nbe recorded.\"Luke<\/p>\n

Luke Littler won last time out in Birmingham, creating history<\/p>\n

Results and schedule Premier League Darts 2026Thursday 14\/07 (from 7:00 PM)Utilita Arena, Birmingham – Night 15<\/p>\n\nTime<\/td>\nPlayer 1<\/td>\nResult<\/td>\nPlayer 2<\/td>\nRound<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n19:15<\/td>\nJosh Rock<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nGian van Veen<\/td>\nQF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n19:45<\/td>\nGerwyn Price<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nMichael van Gerwen<\/td>\nQF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n20:15<\/td>\nLuke Humphries<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nStephen Bunting<\/td>\nQF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n20:45<\/td>\nJonny Clayton<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nLuke Littler<\/td>\nQF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n21:15<\/td>\nWinner QF1<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nWinner QF2<\/td>\nSF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n21:45<\/td>\nWinner QF3<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nWinner QF4<\/td>\nSF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n22:15<\/td>\nWinner SF1<\/td>\n\u2014<\/td>\nWinner SF2<\/td>\nF<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

Josh Rock v Gian van Veen<\/p>\n

The debutants kick off the action in Birmingham with Josh
\nRock and Gian van Veen set to clash. Rock will be coming into the match riding
\nthe crest of a wave. He was brilliant at the Austrian Darts Open, defeating Kevin
\nDoets st 8-6 in a thoroughly entertaining final in Graz to seal his second European
\nTour title. While his Premier League campaign has not gone to plan, the
\nNorthern Irishman will be hoping for the chance of redemption and to end his
\ndebut campaign with a bang.<\/p>\n

For van Veen, there is still a lot to play for. While \u2018Rocky\u2019s\u2019
\nplay-off ambitions are gone, his still remain intact. Sitting in sixth three
\npoints adrift from fourth spot, he is still searching for a maiden nightly win
\ndespite reaching a number of finals. The PDC World Darts Championship finalist had
\na dip in form amid health related problems but seems to be getting back to his best
\ndespite a contrasting campaign in Graz compared to Rock, exiting the tournament
\nin the second round despite being the number one seed.<\/p>\n

They have met on 14 separate occasions with the Dutchman having
\nmore joy, although the momentum heavily shifts towards one player at a time. Six meetings went the way of van Veen before Rock enjoyed a burst of his
\nown, winning four matches in 2025. He has been unable to win against \u2018The Giant\u2019
\nin 2026, however. They have only faced off twice in the Premier League, resulting
\nin 6-2 and 6-3 wins for van Veen. However, on home soil Rock took the headlines with a superb nine-darter in Belfast<\/a> to the delight of the whole venue. He went on to lose, but a moment to treasure nevertheless.\"Josh<\/p>\n

Josh Rock lost 6-2 to Gian van Veen in Belfast but hit a nine-darter<\/p>\n

Gerwyn Price v Michael van Gerwen<\/p>\n

The second quarterfinal is huge in terms of the play-off race
\nas Gerwyn Price takes on van Gerwen. After winning night in Manchester, Price
\nlooked all but certain to confirm his top four spot. The form since has dried
\nup with a single semi-final appearance. It is not a good time for him to endure
\na dip with him seriously in danger of falling out of the top four. On 21
\npoints, a win or two will be crucial if he is going to extend the gap behind.<\/p>\n

The player in question is van Gerwen. Sitting fifth with 18
\npoints, he has never failed to make it to finals night in back-to-back years. It
\nwould be a huge surprise if the seven-time champion was not at the O2, but with
\nhis inconsistent form not a huge surprise. This can be showcased after winning PC15<\/a>. ‘Mighty Mike’ averaged over 122 in his semi-final against Martin Schindler before securing a first floor title in nearly two years. He will hope to bring that form onto the big stage with him in desperate need of points. The Dutchman picked up almost half
\nof his points tally in the opening two rounds. A whole bunch of first round exits have
\nblighted his progress with his last two showings ending at the last-eight.<\/p>\n

In the 59 times they have met on the oche, van Gerwen has
\nwon a resounding 38 of them. On recent form, it paints a different picture. \u2018The
\nIceman\u2019 has been much more in control in their head-to-head, winning three of
\ntheir four matchups this year. Van Gerwen dumped him out of the Bahrain Darts
\nMasters in the semi-finals before Price averaged 117.12 in a Players
\nChampionship event in Hildesheim enroute to an emphatic 6-0 win, five points less than what van Gerwen racked up in Leicester. He has also
\nclaimed defeated him in their two meetings in this year\u2019s Premier League,
\ngiving him the upper hand heading to Birmingham.<\/p>\n

\"Michael<\/p>\n

Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price clash at a crucial time with both players eyeing up spots in the top four<\/p>\n

Luke Humphries v Stephen BuntingThe third match of the evening pitches Bunting against the
\nreigning champion Luke Humphries<\/a>. For Humphries, his home event in Leeds was a
\nsaving grace after a tricky spell. A run to the final earned him enough points
\nto bump him up to fourth, but there is still work to do. One of three players
\nyet to win a night, \u2018Cool Hand Luke\u2019 is making his life very uncomfortable. His
\nscoring has been imperious, but way too many missed doubles have continuously
\ncost him.<\/p>\n

Any chance of Bunting mounting a late charge for the play-off
\nwere all but shutdown after missing match darts against Humphries in Leeds last
\nweek. Five points off fourth spot, realistically only a nightly win will keep
\nhim in contention with results around suiting him as well.<\/p>\n

The former world number one has won six of their last eight meetings.
\nThe two matches in the Premier League were evenly split. Night four in Belfast
\nwent the way of \u2018The Bullet\u2019 with both players averaging over 106. Humphries caught
\na break in Leeds last week, overcoming missed match darts in a very tight game
\nof darts.<\/p>\n

\"Luke<\/p>\n

Luke Humphries defeated Stephen Bunting last time out in the Premier League darts<\/p>\n

Jonny Clayton v Luke Littler<\/p>\n

Clayton and Littler reign supreme in the Premier League.
\nHaving already confirmed their spots for finals night, the pressure is off as
\nthey look for more wins. Clayton has earned four nightly wins on his return to
\nthe big time, hushing the doubters and proving himself as the brilliant darter
\nhe is. A former Premier League champion in the \u2018year of the Ferret\u2019, he will
\nattempt to keep the form at a high level in these last two weeks.<\/p>\n

It will be hard to stop Littler. The boo\u2019s have become a regular
\nin recent times, but so has the winning. His last defeat came on night 11 against
\nClayton in the final at Rotterdam. He has won the prior three nights to cement
\nhis place at the top of the table. A win over Clayton will confirm top spot
\nheading to the O2 in a couple of weeks\u2019 time. He will also eye up the chance to
\nclaim an unprecedented seventh nightly win having already broken his own record
\nof six last time out in Leeds.<\/p>\n

They have met six times in this edition of the Premier
\nLeague, splitting the wins three apiece. Clayton won their last quarterfinal
\nclash, but \u2018The Nuke\u2019 bestows the better record in the final, winning two of
\ntheir three meetings in the climax to the night. After winning his last nine
\nmatches, it feels like Littler will be hard to stop.<\/p>\n

\"Jonny<\/p>\n

First and second in the league table, Luke Littler and Jonny Clayton have met in three nightly finals in 2026<\/p>\n