James Wade has kicked off the 2026 Players Championship season in style, securing victory at Players Championship 1 in Hildesheim on Monday. The 42-year-old Englishman edged Nathan Aspinall 8-6 in a thrilling final to claim his first title of the year and the twelfth Players Championship trophy of his career. The win earned him a £15,000 top prize and marked his first ProTour final since June 2025.
Wade endured a grueling day, starting with four consecutive matches that all went to a deciding leg, including wins over Karel Sedlacek and Alexander Merkx. He then beat Jeffrey De Graaf 6-1, Mensur Suljovic 6-3, and Joe Cullen in another decider to reach the semi-finals. There, he faced Michael van Gerwen, trailing 6-5 before turning it around with checkouts of 104, 127, 130, and 137 to win 7-6. In the final against Aspinall, Wade fell behind 5-3 but rallied with four legs in a row in 41 darts, sealing the 8-6 win with a 16-darter. He admitted the physical and mental toll, saying, "That final shouldn't have lasted much longer. I didn't want to go to that last leg."
After the victory, Wade revisited his omission from the 2026 Premier League Darts, despite two major finals last year. He stated, "Of course I should have been in it. But the PDC and Sky have picked players that represent the game in the best way, shape and form. And what a team they've put forward. I would have been better than some of them, but it is what it is." When asked if the snub fueled him, he responded candidly: "Not really. Maybe I feel a bit sad, despondent, a little bit rejected as a person. But there are probably ten people out there who feel exactly the same. So it is what it is. Do I deserve to be in it? Yes. Was I in it? No."
The title also boosts Wade in the world rankings, as he leapfrogs Josh Rock and Danny Noppert toward eighth place, closing in on number seven Stephen Bunting. He is now set to chase back-to-back titles, with the second Players Championship of the year taking place this afternoon in Hildesheim.
