Laura Turner
Sky Sports Darts commentator
World Cup of Darts: Laura Turner's tips ahead of the 32-nation tournament in Frankfurt
Who will win this year's 32-nation tournament in Frankfurt? Laura Turner gives us her top tips. The World Cup of Darts starts on Thursday - live on Sky Sports Action from 6pm
Last Updated: 20/06/22 12:10am
Scotland's Peter Wright and John Henderson will be aiming to retain their World Cup of Darts title in Frankfurt, but they'll face stiff competition from 31 other nations.
The 32-nation tournament will return to the Eissporthalle from June 16-19 - live on Sky Sports - for an annual festival of darts which sees two-player teams competing in a mixture of Doubles and Singles games.
With the first round split across the opening two nights, Scotland's Peter Wright and John Henderson begin their title defence against Hong Kong, but they face competition with England, Wales, Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Australia all in the mix of claiming victory.
Here's Sky Sports' Laura Turner with her top tips...
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Which team is favourite to win this year?
"It's a really, really tough one to call. I really fancy Australia to do well. It's the third time Damon Heta and Simon Whitlock have played together and they've been a bit unlucky having lost in the quarter-finals twice before - both times to Wales. If they pay Wales, it wouldn't be until the final this year. Australia could go all the way."
What makes the World Cup such a special event?
"For me, it's one of my favourite events in the calendar. It just has a different dynamic in the fact that players are so used to playing as individuals and this event has that doubles element which makes it sometimes unpredictable.
"It's quite a short format in those opening rounds and there are some really tough opening draws."
What are the matches to watch out for?
"Canada are taking on Ireland and with Jeff Smith and Matt Campbell in their team, they're both very capable players so that could be a potential banana skin for Ireland.
"Also England facing the Czech Republic. I think that's a really, really tough match for both with the fiery Adam Gawlas and Karel Sedlacek having experience of playing together. I think that really is a big thing, especially in pairs competition that you're comfortable with your partner.
"This is the first time Michael Smith and James Wade have played together so it's a question of how well and how quickly they can gel because in that short-format matches you have to kind of hit the floor running."
Who are the ones to watch?
"I'm really interested to see the USA because I think the pairing of Danny Baggish and Jules van Dongen is really strong.
"I'm also keen to see how Justin Hewitt and Craig Galliano get on for Gibraltar against Northern Ireland because they're both doing well on the Development Tour and they're both very, very committed to darts. Galliano played the event as an 18-year-old. There's some really good young talent coming through in Gibraltar."
What do you make of the format? Do we want to see more doubles matches?
"I like pairs because it's something different from a playing point of view and as a spectator. It's a different layer, a different element, and makes it stand out from all the other tournaments.
"I would like to see more pairs instead of the singles. The way it is at the moment it's seemingly the fairest way with two singles but it would be quite good to maybe trial doubles first perhaps and see how it goes. Unless it goes 1-1 we don't see that pairs element after the first round."
The World Cup of Darts is special because...
"From a playing point of view, there's nothing better than representing your country because you're so used to playing darts as an individual that the opportunity to go up there and represent your country is a unique opportunity within the PDC.
"It also gives players, who don't play on TV too often, the opportunity to step up. We get to see new faces, new players. Looks at Devon Petersen, who first played in the event 12 years ago, playing alongside Stefan Vermaak, who will be making his debut.
"This event can open doors and can offer opportunities and valuable experience in front of big crowds and TV."
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2022 World Cup of Darts
Schedule of Play
Thursday June 16 (1800 BST)
First Round x8
Denmark vs Singapore
New Zealand vs Switzerland
Republic of Ireland vs Canada
Austria vs Finland
Northern Ireland vs Gibraltar
Wales vs Philippines
Germany vs Spain
Netherlands vs Brazil
Friday June 17 (1800 BST)
First Round x8
Latvia vs Hungary
Poland vs USA
Sweden vs South Africa
Portugal vs Italy
Australia vs Lithuania
England vs Czech Republic
Scotland vs Hong Kong
Belgium vs Japan
Saturday June 18
Afternoon Session (1200 BST)
Second Round x4
Evening Session (1800 BST)
Second Round x4
Sunday June 19
Afternoon Session (1200 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Evening Session (1800 BST)
Semi-Finals
Final
Competing Nations & Pairings
Australia - Damon Heta & Simon Whitlock
Austria - Mensur Suljovic & Rowby-John Rodriguez
Belgium - Dimitri Van den Bergh & Kim Huybrechts
Brazil - Diogo Portela & Artur Valle
Canada - Jeff Smith & Matt Campbell
Czech Republic - Adam Gawlas & Karel Sedlacek
Denmark - Vladimir Andersen & Andreas Toft Jörgensen
England - Michael Smith & James Wade
Finland - Marko Kantele & Aki Paavilainen
Germany - Gabriel Clemens & Martin Schindler
Gibraltar - Justin Hewitt & Craig Galliano
Hong Kong - Lok Yin Lee & Ho Tung Ching
Hungary - Nándor Prés & Gergely Lakatos
Italy - Guiseppe Di Rocco & Gabriel Rollo
Japan - Tomoya Goto & Toru Suzuki
Latvia - Madars Razma & Nauris Gleglu
Lithuania - Darius Labanauskas & Mindaugas Barauskas
Netherlands - Danny Noppert & Dirk van Duijvenbode
New Zealand - Ben Robb & Warren Parry
Northern Ireland - Daryl Gurney & Brendan Dolan
Philippines - Lourence Ilagan & RJ Escaros
Poland - Krzysztof Ratajski & Sebastian Bialecki
Portugal - Jose de Sousa & Vítor Jerónimo
Republic of Ireland - William O'Connor & Steve Lennon
Scotland - Peter Wright & John Henderson
Singapore - Paul Lim & Harith Lim
South Africa - Devon Petersen & Stefan Vermaak
Spain - Jose Justicia & Tony Martinez
Sweden - Daniel Larsson & Johan Engstrom
Switzerland - Stefan Bellmont & Thomas Junghans
USA - Danny Baggish & Jules van Dongen
Wales - Gerwyn Price & Jonny Clayton
Format
First Round
Best of nine legs doubles
Second Round, Quarter-Finals & Semi-Finals
The second round, quarter-finals & semi-finals will be played as two best of seven leg 501 singles matches, with both nations nominating the order in which their players play. In the event of both nations winning one singles match apiece, a best of seven leg 501 doubles match will be played to decide the tie.
Final
The final will be played as two best of seven leg 501 Singles matches, with both nations nominating the order in which their players play the first two matches, followed by a best of seven leg 501 doubles match and then reverse singles matches. The first team to win three games is declared the winner.
