Littler and Van Gerwen to headline blockbuster opening night at Wolverhampton darts

Littler begins his defence of the Eric Bristow Trophy against Karel Sedlacek during a bumper double session that will also feature three-time world champion Van Gerwen facing another rising star in Beau Greaves.

Saturday afternoon's opening session will feature the players in Groups B, D, F and H, before players in Groups A, C, E and G enter the fray on Saturday evening.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Gerwyn Price will headline Saturday afternoon’s action, as the Welshman kicks off his campaign against Ricky Evans.

Price has been pitted in Group D alongside three-time runner-up James Wade, who will play 2025 Winmau Challenge Tour winner Stefan Bellmont - the first Swiss player to feature in the Grand Slam of Darts.

Newly-crowned European champion Gian van Veen takes on Women’s World Matchplay champion Lisa Ashton in his Group F opener, as Northern Ireland’s number one Josh Rock and emerging Dutchman Wessel Nijman also lock horns in Group F.

World No.6 Jonny Clayton goes up against 2025 Development Tour winner Cam Crabtree in another eye-catching tussle, while Danny Noppert aims to continue his fine form against debutant Lukas Wenig in the afternoon’s other Group H clash.

Chris Dobey - a winner of three Players Championship titles in 2025 - plays World Youth Championship runner-up Jurjen van der Velde in Group B, before Australian No.1 Damon Heta and 2024 Grand Slam finalist Martin Lukeman collide.

Reigning champion Littler will then take centre stage on Saturday evening, as the world champion makes his return to the West Midlands against Czech No.1 Sedlacek in Group E.

However, arguably the match of the night will see Dutch superstar Van Gerwen open his bid for a fourth Grand Slam of Darts crown against record-breaker Greaves, who has won a staggering 86 consecutive games on the PDC Women’s Series circuit.

Van Gerwen and Greaves make up a blockbuster Group G, which also features a fascinating encounter between two-time runner-up Gary Anderson and Germany’s rising star Niko Springer.

In Group A, world No.1 Luke Humphries begins his challenge for a second Grand Slam title against CDC Continental Cup champion Alex Spellman, before 2022 champion Michael Smith renews his rivalry with Nathan Aspinall, in a repeat of their Wolverhampton decider three years ago.

2023 semi-finalist Stephen Bunting and German No.1 Martin Schindler will be the star attractions in Group C, with the pair up against Alexis Toylo and Luke Woodhouse, respectively.

Elsewhere, Northern Ireland’s World Cup champion Daryl Gurney takes on the returning Connor Scutt in the evening’s opener.

The group stage action continues on Sunday, as Saturday's winning players go head-to-head, while the losing players also collide before the final round-robin games take place across Monday and Tuesday.

Following the conclusion of the group stage, the top two players from each group will advance to the knockout stages of the Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts, which will get under way on Wednesday, November 12.

The last 16 will be split across Wednesday and Thursday evening, before the quarter-finals are held on Friday and Saturday.

The tournament then concludes with a bumper double-session on Sunday, November 16, as the afternoon's semi-finals are followed by the final later in the evening, as the remaining two players compete for the £150,000 top prize and the Eric Bristow Trophy.

The 2025 Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).