World No 1 and former champion Luke Littler will headline the list of Tour Card Holders and International Qualifiers competing in Monday's Winmau World Youth Championship. The full 128-player field will be finalised following the conclusion of the Development Tour season this weekend, with Events 21-24 taking place in Wigan on October 3-4.
The 2026 World Youth Championship will see the round-robin phase and the knockout phase from the last 64 down to the semi-finals staged on Monday October 5 at the Robin Park Leisure Centre. Littler, who withdrew from Players Championship 29 and 30 after his defeat at the World Series Finals in Amsterdam effectively ended his chances of qualifying for the finals in Minehead in November, but he could still play at the venue.
The final will be held on Sunday November 29 at Butlin's Minehead Resort during the Ladbrokes Players Championship Finals, with a boosted top prize of £15,000 also on offer. World Champion Littler - who lifted the World Youth Championship in 2023 - will be the top seed given his status as world No 1, ahead of Poland's Sebastian Bialecki and Ireland's Keane Barry.
Reigning two-time champion Gian van Veen will not return to defend his title while Beau Greaves - runner-up to Van Veen 12 months ago - and Yorick Hofkens have also chosen not to compete. The Winmau World Youth Championship will begin from 11.30am on Monday at the Robin Park Leisure Centre.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing