European Darts Open 2026 Predictions: Back reliable Ross Smith

The PDC European Tour is back in Germany again this weekend in Leverkusen, with all 48 players looking to grab another ranking title on the continent. 

Of course, our resident darts tipster Sean Rafferty is back on board and here are his European Darts Open Betting Tips...

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New customers only. Register, deposit with Debit Card, and place first bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get £30 in Sports Free Bets & £20 in Bet Builder Free Bets within 24 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply. T&Cs Apply.

History, Location and Format

The 2026 European Darts Open is the tenth of fifteen events on the PDC European Tour this season.

The event is being held at the Ostermann-Arena in Leverkusen, Germany and runs from Friday 10 July to Sunday 12 July. It will be aired on PDC and Viaplay in the UK.

The 48 strong field features the top 16 in the world, the next 16 from the Pro Tour order of merit and 16 regional qualifiers, plus a reserve list for any drop-outs.

Prize Money

There is a prize fund of £230,000 on offer to the 48 participants, with £35,000 going to the winner.

Ross Smith to win the tournament @ 12/1

It’s been a largely successful year for Ross Smith to date, as he looks to continue building on the best start he’s ever had to a year. We may be over halfway into 2026, but with most of the major tournaments still to come, he looks to be putting himself in a great position to make a good fist of them, with the added bonus of defending very little prize money in the rankings, it’s definitely an opportunity to climb further than 15th spot where he is at the moment, he really has a chance to solidify his place inside the top 16.

One of the main improvements I’ve noticed from Smith this year has been his ability to string good results together with his B or C-game. I feel like with a lot of his title wins in the past, he’s blown the field away with a series of huge averages. This year feels a bit different though - when he finally won his first ever European Tour event in May, he averaged below 93 in three of his five matches. When he reached the semi-finals of the most recent European Tour event for us a couple weeks ago, he averaged below 97 in three of his four matches. Although that level won’t cut it all the time, it’s proof that he’s finding different ways to win now and doesn’t necessarily have to be at his best, he would’ve lost a lot of those matches a couple of years ago.

This quarter of the draw was between Smith and Cross as to who I backed, but Smith was the more appealing despite the shorter odds as he looks to have an easier draw. Niels Zonneveld, who’s form has tailed off a bit in recent months or Daniel Klose await in the last 32, followed by a potential last 16 match against Nathan Aspinall who hasn’t played a great deal of darts recently. He may need to get past Rob Cross in the quarter-finals but I’d be more confident of Smudger getting to that stage of the tournament.

He’s made the semi-finals or better in three of the last five European Tour events and at 12/1, Smith looks to be one of the most reliable players to be on now for a big run in these events.

Luke Woodhouse to win the tournament (each-way) @ 33/1

Woody came close to adding yet another title to his fast-growing CV when he made the final of a Pro Tour event on Tuesday this week, unfortunately for him he was runner-up this time to Gabriel Clemens who finally won his maiden PDC event. It’s more encouraging signs though and to relate back to the point I made about Smith, he made that final without playing anywhere near his best, averaging below 93 in five of his seven matches.

His maiden European Tour title win in May was along similar lines, he never got above the 99 mark in the averages all event, but he remained at a consistent level and beat what was in-front of him that weekend. It’s one thing having big averages in your armoury, but to be confident enough to know you can win matches when you’re below par is probably a better strength to have, that would perfectly describe Luke Woodhouse in 2026 in my opinion as he’s transformed himself from a “nearly man” to a ready winner.

The last 32 draw looks fairly generous, with the winner of Mario Vandenbogaerde and Dragutin Horvat awaiting Luke in his opening match on Saturday. It could get a lot tougher after that as Jonny Clayton potentially awaits in the last 16, someone I thought about going with in this section but couldn’t get on board with at much skinnier odds of 8/1. If he can come through that match then this quarter of the draw is his to lose in my opinion. For someone with a realistic chance of making the semi-finals, 33/1 represents massive value each-way.

Cameron Menzies to win the tournament (each-way) @ 50/1

I don’t often back Cammy in these big stage events, mainly because he’s shown very little in them in years gone by. Something feels different about Menzies this year though, whether it’s just down to having more experience and maturity now or if he views this as more of a second chance in his career after his post-match controversy in his World Championship defeat to Charlie Manby in December. I like to think it’s a mixture of the two and it’s arguably created the most dangerous version we’ve seen of Menzies so far.

Cammy won his first title of the year as he triumphed on the Pro Tour on Monday evening, making it the third consecutive year he’s won a floor title. The obvious next step is to try and win a title on the big stage in-front of fans - although he hasn’t come that close to doing so, there has been notable signs of improvement in his results. Cammy completed the best run he’s ever had on the European Tour at the International Darts Open in May, he made the semi-finals, defeating the likes of Martin Schindler, Josh Rock and James Wade on that run. He then hammered Gerwyn Price 6-2 in the most recent European Tour event, with an average of 106.

I fancy the Scot to weave his way through the first couple of rounds - he faces Home Nation qualifier Jan Schmidt in the opening round, before facing Mike De Decker who’s thrown in some shocking performances in just the past couple of days. James Wade would be a tough tie in the last 16, but Cammy’s already defeating him twice on the European Tour this year.

The belief is definitely growing and most importantly Cammy is the happiest he’s been in a long time away from the oche, which generally rubs off on his game. Considering the recent form, 50/1 looks a fair bet for Menzies to put in his best effort to date on the big stage as he prepares for the World Matchplay in Blackpool next weekend.