WDF WORLD CUP CHAMPIONSHIPS - PLAYING RULES & FORMAT

 

 The World Darts Federation [WDF] World Cup series shall consist of three separate Championships, which are played between teams representing Full Member Darts Bodies of the World Darts Federation subject to complying with the Eligibility Rule No 19.00 which is detailed on Page Nos. 16 & 17 of this document.

The seeding the World Cup, and Women's World Cup shall be based on the total points attained by a country's players for all events, in the previous respective Cup. The seeding shall be determined by countries and not by players. There shall be no seeding in the Youth World Cup.

The WDF Playing Rules for the Sport of Darts shall apply to all the matches played in the WDF World Cup, the Women's World Cup, and the Youth World Cup.

WDF WORLD CUP

           

1.00 PLAYERS

1.01 Each World Cup team shall consist of four persons, eligible to play for their Country, who shall be selected by the respective Full Member Darts Body for that Country, by such method as it may determine.

1.02 All selected players must comply with Eligibility Rule No 19.00 - See Page Nos. 16 & 17.

 

2.00 EVENTS

2.01 The World Cup shall consist of three events namely;

(a) Singles (b) Pairs (c) Four-Person Team.

 

3.00 SEEDING

3.01 The 'seeding' of seeded countries shall be based on the results of the previous WDF World Cup as follows;

(a) Four-Person Teams : the first eight (8) countries, shall be seeded one through eight, in the order of the points attained by those countries.

(b) Pairs : there shall be sixteen (16) seeds from the first twelve (12) countries in the order of points attained by those countries as follows;

 

Note

In this and the following sections the right-hand column shall be read as follows; the left-hand number refers to the seeded country and the right-hand letter refers to the team, or player, with 'A' as the first listed team, or player, 'B' as the second, and so on.

  (c) Singles : there shall be thirty-two (32) seeds from the first fourteen (14) countries in the order of points attained as follows;

 

3.02 The top twelve (12) countries shall list their Pairs teams on the entry form in the order that they wish the players to be seeded.

The top fourteen (14) countries shall be list their Singles players on the entry form in the order that they wish the players to be seeded.

3.03 The seeded teams and players shall be placed in the bracket systems so that they do not play each other until the latest possible round of matchplay and shall be placed in the following orders;

(a) Teams : the eight (8) seeded countries shall be placed in the bracket system as indicated below;

Group : A ; B ; C ; D ; E ; F ; G ; H.

Seed : 1 ; 8 ; 5 ; 4 ; 2 ; 7 ; 6 ; 3.

(b) Pairs : the sixteen (16) seeded countries shall be placed in the bracket system as indicated below;

  

(c) Singles : the thirty two (32) seeded countries shall be entered in the bracket system as indicated below;

4.00 DRAW

4.01 The draw for the order of play shall be conducted in such a way that in the first round of matchplay in the Singles and Pairs events, a country's players shall not be required to meet another country's players more than once.

4.02 The BYES, if any, shall be distributed such that the differential between countries is not greater than one.

 

5.00 PLAYING FORMAT

5.01 SINGLES

The best of seven '7' Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, and a double or 'bull' to finish.

The Match Tie-Breaker Rule shall apply to the seventh Leg.

The non-seeded players of each country shall be entered into the bracket system by a random draw, such that there is one player in each quarter of the bracket system

The winners of each quarter of the bracket system shall compete in the Semi-Finals, and Final of the Singles event, where the Champion, Runner-Up, and Joint Third positions shall be determined.

5.02 PAIRS

The best of seven '7' Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, and a double or 'bull' to finish.

The Match Tie-Breaker Rule shall apply to the seventh Leg.

The non-seeded players of each country shall be entered into the bracket system by a random draw, such that there is one player in each half of the bracket system

The winners of each half of the bracket system shall compete in the Semi-Finals, and Final of the Singles event, where the Champion, Runner-Up, and Joint Third positions shall be determined.

 

5.03 FOUR-PERSON TEAMS

The best of seventeen '17' Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, double or 'bull' to finish.

Each team shall be placed into one of eight (8) Round-Robin groups.

The non-seeded countries shall be placed in the groups by a random draw so that the groups are as nearly equal in number of teams as possible.

The first and second placed teams of each group shall then compete in a straight Knock-out as follows;

 

The players of each Team shall be nominated by their country in their required Throwing Order, which must be submitted prior to the Championships.

IE: 1st ; 2nd ; 3rd ; and 4th player.

 

The Order of Play for a Four-Person Team match shall then be as follows;

The Order of Play indicated on the Assignment / Result Sheet can not be re-arranged.

Note

The left-hand column lists the players from the country entered on the left-hand side of the match scorecard so that the first leg of matchplay shall be between Player No 1 of the left-hand country and Player No 2 of the right-hand country.

If at the end of the 16th leg, the match is tied at eight '8' legs all, then each country shall nominate one player to contest the 17th leg which shall be started under the Match Tie-Breaker Rule.

{ See Rule 23.00 on Page No 19. }

 

6.00 POINTS ALLOCATION

6.01 In each respective event points are allocated to each country for the placings attained by its players.

6.02 The country achieving the highest aggregate number of points from the three events shall be declared the WDF WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS.

6.03 In the event of a 'tie' for first place then those Countries shall be declared JOINT WDF WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS, and shall share all honours equally.

6.04 Points shall only be allocated to teams or players that have attained a placing by winning at least one match.

IE: If a team or a player attains a placing through a BYE, or the default of the opponent, then there shall be no points awarded for that placing.

6.05 In the team event a team must win at least one match to be awarded points.

 

6.06 Subject to complying with Clause Nos. 6.04 and 6.05 above the points to be allocated for placings shall be as follows;

Each Four-Person Team will be allocated '1' Championship point for every match won during Round-Robin matchplay, this will recognise the successes of the teams that do not progress further than a Round-Robin Group.

In the instance of teams being 'tied' with equal points gained during matchplay within a Round-Robin Group then the comparison of 'legs difference' will be used in order to resolve a 'tie' before using a play-off between those teams.

If the final group placings are not determined by comparing Legs Differences then the result of the actual match between the two Teams in the Round Robin Matchplay shall be used to break the tie.

The ‘play-offs’ rule relating to a tie between more than two teams remains unchanged.

 

WDF WOMEN'S WORLD CUP

7.00 PLAYERS

7.01 Each Women's World Cup team shall consist of two women, eligible to play for their Country, who shall be selected by the respective Full Member Darts Body for that Country, by such method as it may determine.

7.02 All selected players must comply with Eligibility Rule No 19.00 - See Page Nos. 16 & 17.

 

8.00 EVENTS

8.01 The Womens World Cup shall consist of two events namely;

(a) Singles (b) Pairs.

 

9.00 SEEDING

9.01 The 'seeding' of seeded countries shall be based on the results of the previous WDF World Cup as follows;

(a) Pairs : the first eight (8) countries, shall be seeded one through eight, in the order of the points attained by those countries.

(b) Singles : there shall be sixteen (16) seeds from the first twelve (12) countries in the order of points attained by those countries as follows;

 

9.02 The top twelve (12) countries shall list their Singles players on the entry form in the order that they wish the players to be seeded.

9.03 The seeded teams and players shall be placed in the bracket systems so that they do not play each other until the latest possible round of matchplay and shall be placed in the following orders;

(a) Pairs : the eight (8) seeded countries shall be placed in the bracket system as indicated below;

Group : A ; B ; C ; D ; E ; F ; G ; H.

Seed : 1 ; 8 ; 5 ; 4 ; 2 ; 7 ; 6 ; 3.

(b) Singles : the sixteen (16) seeded countries shall be placed in the bracket system as indicated below;

 

10.00 DRAW

10.01 The draw for the order of play shall be conducted in such a way that in the first round of matchplay in the Singles and Pairs events, a country's players shall not be required to meet another country's players more than once.

10.02 The BYES, if any, shall be distributed such that the differential between countries is not greater than one.

 

11.00 PLAYING FORMAT

11.01 SINGLES

The best of seven '7' Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, and a double or 'bull' to finish.

The Match Tie-Breaker Rule shall apply to the seventh Leg.

The non-seeded players of each country shall be entered into the bracket system by a random draw, such that there is one player in each half of the bracket system

The winners of each half of the bracket system shall compete in the Semi-Finals, and Final of the Singles event, where the Champion, Runner-Up, and Joint Third positions shall be determined.

11.02 PAIRS

The best of seven '7' Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, and a double or 'bull' to finish.

The Match Tie-Breaker Rule shall apply to the seventh Leg.

Each Pairs team shall be placed into one of eight (8) Round-Robin groups.

The non-seeded countries shall be placed in the groups by a random draw, so that the groups are as nearly equal in number of teams as possible.

The first and second placed teams of each group shall then compete in a straight Knock-out as follows;

  

12.00 POINTS ALLOCATION

12.01 In each respective event points are allocated to each country for the placings attained by its players.

12.02 The country achieving the highest aggregate number of points from the three events shall be declared the WOMEN'S WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS.

12.03 In the event of a 'tie' for first place then those Countries shall be declared JOINT WDF WOMEN'S WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS, and shall share all honours equally.

12.04 Points shall only be allocated to teams or players that have attained a placing by winning at least one match.

IE: If a team or a player attains a placing through a BYE, or the default of the opponent, then there shall be no points awarded for that placing.

12.05 In the team event a team must win at least one match to be awarded points.

12.06 Subject to complying with Clause Nos. 12.04 and 12.05 above the points to be allocated for placings shall be as follows;

.

 

Each Women's Pairs Team will be allocated '1' Championship point for every match won during Round-Robin matchplay, this will recognise the successes of the teams that do not progress further than their Round-Robin Group.

In the instance of teams being 'tied' with equal points gained during matchplay within a Round-Robin Group then the comparison of 'legs difference' will be used in order to resolve a 'tie' before using a play-off between those teams.

If the final group placings are not determined by comparing Legs Differences then the result of the actual match between the two Teams in the Round Robin Matchplay shall be used to break the tie.

The ‘play-offs’ rule relating to a tie between more than two teams remains unchanged.

 

WDF YOUTH WORLD CUP

13.00 PLAYERS

Each Youth World Cup team shall consist of one female youth and one male youth, eligible to be play for their Country, who shall be selected by the respective Full Member Darts Body for that Country, by such method as they shall determine.

13.01 AGE - Only youths who will not have reached their 18th birthday by the final day of the WDF World Cup shall be eligible to play in the Youth World Cup.

14.00 EVENTS

The Youth World Cup shall consist of three events namely;

(a) Girls Singles (b) Boys Singles (c) Mixed Pairs

15.00 SEEDING

There shall be no seeding in the Youth World Cup.

16.00 FORMAT

There shall be a round-robin format for the preliminary rounds in each event and a knock-out format for the qualifiers of each event.

16.01 ROUND-ROBIN GROUPS

The players/teams of each event shall be divided into groups by a random draw. The number of the groups for each event shall be determined by the numbers of players/teams in that event as follows;

(a) Up to 11 players/teams : two groups

(b) 12 to 23 players/teams : four groups

(c) Over 23 players/teams : eight groups

16.02 KNOCK-OUT FORMAT

In each event the qualifiers of each group shall compete in a straight knock-out as follows;

(a) Two groups : The first and second players/teams of each group shall compete in Semi-Finals

Group A - 1st plays Group B - 2nd and Group B - 1st plays Group A - 2nd.

(b) Four Groups: The first and second placed players/teams of each groups shall compete in the Quarter-Finals, as follows;

 

(c) Eight Groups: The first and second placed players/teams of each group shall compete in the Last Sixteen as follows;

 

17.00 PLAYING FORMAT

Each match in the three events shall be played over the best of 3 Legs, each 501 up, with a straight start, and a double or 'bull' finish.

The Match Tie-Breaker Rule shall apply in the third leg.

 

18.00 POINTS ALLOCATION

18.01 In each respective event points shall be allocated to each Country for the placings attained by its players/teams.

18.02 The Country achieving the highest aggregate number of points from the three events shall be declared the Youth Cup World Champions.

18.03 In the event of a tie for first place then those Countries shall be declared Joint Youth World Cup Champions and shall share all honours equally.

18.04 Points shall only be allocated to players / teams that have attained a placing by winning at least one match.

18.05 The points to be allocated for placings shall be as follows;

 

GENERAL RULES

19.00 ELIGIBILITY - Officials and Players.

19.01 Every Member Darts Body, [Officials and Representative Players], that has not met the financial commitments in connection with an event under the immediate jurisdiction of the World Darts Federation shall be classified as 'unfinancial' and therefore 'ineligible' to compete in any other World Darts Federation event.

19.02 To play for a Member Darts Body in an official WDF Tournament, a person must have resided for at least three (3) years immediately prior to the date of the tournament being played in the country represented by that Member Darts Body.

19.03 In the case where two or more Member Darts Bodies are situated within one national entity, the above requirement shall be interpreted as residence in the national entity.

These shall be considered the minimum requirements for Eligibility and a Member Darts Body may impose additional eligibility requirements for its players and officials.

19.04 A person, eligible to play for a Member Darts Body, who moves from the country represented by that Member Darts Body, shall remain eligible to play for that Member Darts Body until such time as he or she meets the Eligibility requirements of another Member Darts Body.

19.05 Any person who has played for a Member Darts Body in an official WDF Tournament shall not play for another Member Darts Body in an official WDF Tournament earlier than the third calendar year after the last year in which he or she played for the former Member Darts Body.

19.06 In the instance of a dispute arising, the context shall be put to the WDF Executive for a ruling which shall be final and binding. This procedure shall apply to all darts Tournaments promoted under the jurisdiction of the WDF.

 19.07 No player, or official, or agent who has participated in any capacity, at any stage, in a ' World' , (a) 'International' , or National titled event, which is outside the jurisdiction of, and not recognised by the World Darts Federation, or any of its Member Darts Bodies, shall be eligible to participate in any WDF darts event, or any WDF Ranked darts event.

19.07 No player, or official, or agent who is involved, or has been involved, or has had dealings with any (b) 'World' titled, or 'International' titled darts body which is outside the jurisdiction of, and not recognised by the World Darts Federation shall be eligible to participate in any WDF darts event, or any WDF Ranked darts event.

19.07 The Right of Appeal by any person, or agent affected by a decision made under Clause 13.07 (a) or (c) (b) shall be afforded to that person, or agent on submission of a written appeal.

The written appeal shall, together with all relevant documentation, be submitted to the WDF Regional Disciplinary Committee whose jurisdiction covers that person's, or agent's country of residence.

19.07 Any player, official, or agent wishing to enter, or re-enter a Member Darts Body of the World Darts (d) Federation after participating in any capacity, or at any stage, in an event as under Clause 19.07 (a), or having been involved, or having had dealings as under Clause 19.07 (b), may apply for entry, or re-entry to that Member Darts Body by written application.

19.07 The written application for entry, or re-entry, must be submitted through the Member Darts Body (e) representing the country of residence of the person, or agent making the application.

The application shall be forwarded, together with all relevant documentation to the WDF Regional Disciplinary Committee whose jurisdiction covers that WDF Member Darts Body.

19.07 Any decision of a WDF Regional Disciplinary Committee shall be final, subject only to that person's, (f) or agent's Right of Appeal.

An eventual appeal must be submitted in writing to the WDF Executive for consideration.

Such an appeal must be accompanied by any information, or documentation that has not been previously considered by the respective WDF Regional Disciplinary Committee.

 

20.00 SEEDING

20.01 Ties - If there are ties in the total points attained by seeded countries the following criteria shall apply;

(a) If the inclusion of all tied countries in the seeding will not increase the total number of seeded countries then there shall be a random draw for the order of the tied countries in the seeding.

EG: If there is a tie for fifth place by two countries, then there will be a draw to determine which country shall be number five and which number six.

This draw shall be applicable to all events, one draw shall determine the order of seeding for the Teams, Pairs, and Singles events.

(b) If the inclusion of all tied countries in the seeding will increase the total number of seeded countries, then none of the tied countries shall be seeded, this criteria shall be considered separately for each event.

EG: If there is a tie for eighth place in the World Cup then none of the tied countries shall be seeded, but the tied countries would be seeded for the Pairs and Singles events with a draw for the order of seeding as in criteria (a) above.

20.02 Non-entries

(a) Only countries determined by these criteria shall be seeded.

(b) If a country normally seeded under these criteria does not enter a team in the World Cup, or the Women's World Cup, its place in the bracket systems, or round-robin groups shall be allocated to a non-seeded country by means of a regular draw.

 

21.00 THROWING ORDER

21.01 The winner of the toss, or draw, shall throw first in the first leg, and alternate legs thereafter.

21.02 In the Teams and Pairs events the countries shall designate the order of throw of the players, which shall not be changed during the events.

21.03 The designated Team line-up submitted prior to a WDF Championship can not be re-arranged.

21.04 In the instance of the discovery of an error in the throwing order which has been caused by an official, or a player, then the match referee shall offer the option to continue to the player, or team that has thrown second.

21.05 The team that has thrown in the wrong throwing order, due to an error on the part of the player, or a team manager, shall forfeit that leg to the opposing team.

 

22.00 PRACTICE

22.01 Each player is entitled to six '6' practice darts at the assigned match board prior to a match.

No other practice darts may be thrown during the match without the permission of the match referee.

The only exception to this rule occurs in the Four-Person Team event when players are scheduled to play in the 5th, and up to the 17th legs, when each player shall only be entitled to three '3' practice darts prior to throwing in those legs.

22.02 No practice shall be allowed on unassigned match boards after an event has started.

22.03 Practice boards shall be provided for the exclusive use of the players.

 

23.00 MATCH TIE-BREAKER RULE

23.01 In the instance of a tie in an event the Singles player, or a Pairs team, or a nominated Player in a Four-Person Team shall contest the Match Tie Break leg, which shall be the seventh leg in the Singles, or Pairs event, and the seventeenth leg in the Four-Person Team event.

23.02 The Singles players, or a nominated player in the Pairs, or Four-Person Team shall throw for the Bull to decide which player shall throw first in the Match Tie-Break leg.

23.03 The original winner of the Toss, or draw shall throw first for the Bull, each player in his turn shall continue throwing until a dart has hit and has remained in the face of the dartboard.

23.04 If that dart is in the '25' bed, or the '50' bed, then the player shall remove that dart before the other player throws.

23.05 The referee shall award the first throw of the Match Tie-break leg to whichever of the players has thrown nearest to the Bull.

23.06 If both darts are in the '25' bed, or the '50' bed, or the darts thrown are adjudged by the referee to be equal in distance to the Bull then the players will be requested to throw again, in reverse order, to obtain a decision.

 

24.00 ROUND-ROBIN GROUP TIE-BREAKER

24.01 Each Four-Person Team, and Women's Pairs team will be allocated '1' Championship point for every match won during Round-Robin matchplay, this will recognise the successes of the teams that do not progress further than their Round-Robin Group.

24.02 In the instance of teams being 'tied' with equal points gained during matchplay within a Round-Robin Group then the comparison of 'legs difference' will be used in order to resolve a 'tie'.

If the final group placings are not determined by comparing Legs Differences then the result of the

actual match between the two Teams in the Round Robin Matchplay shall be used to break the tie.

24.03 The ‘play-offs’ rule relating to a tie between more than two teams remains unchanged.

 

24.04 Players

(a) In the Four-Person Team event each 'tied' team shall nominate a player to play in the Tie-Breaker.

(b) In the Women's Pairs team event the Pairs team shall play.

24.05 Matches

(b) In a three way 'Tie' all three players/teams shall play on one board, 501 up, with the first player/team to win two '2' clear legs being declared the winner of the Tie-Breaker.

24.05 In order to determine which player/team shall throw first they will participate in a bull-shoot.

In a three-way 'Tie' the bull-shoot shall determine the sequence of the throwing order; 1; 2; 3; for the first leg. The throwing order for the second leg shall be; 2; 3; 1; and for the third leg it shall be; 3; 1; 2. In the fourth and final leg it shall be 1; 2; 3.

  

25.00 SUBSTITUTIONS

25.01 Team members from one up to the whole team may be changed prior to a WDF Cup, and up until the time when a player or team shall be required to throw the first dart in any event in the Cup.

On arrival in the 'host' country Team Managers must advise the organisers of any team changes, and by no later than the reception ceremony, - this will allow for amendments to be introduced prior to the start of the tournament.

25.02 In the Pairs and Team events if a player is unable to continue for a bona-fide reason, then one substitution shall be allowable, but only at the start of a match and only by an individual that has not already played in the Cup.

 

26.00 TEAM MANAGERS MEETINGS

26.01 Prior to WDF Cups the ‘host’ country will stage a meeting with all Team Mangers to ensure that all items requiring their co-operation during the running of the tournament are clearly understood by every one involved. If available at the tournament in question a WDF Executive shall be in attendance at the same meeting."

 

27.00 APPLICATIONS

27.01 Applications to 'host' WDF World Cup Championships must be made in writing by an accredited Member Darts Body at least (2) years prior to the date of the event.

27.02 The WDF approval of an application may not be given for a tournament scheduled on a date which is more than four (4) years in advance of the date of the application being heard.

28.00 REVISION NOTES

The tenth revision incorporates a new section on the World Youth Cup based on the document adopted in the 10th WDF Conference held in London on Monday 9th December 1996.

The tenth revision also introduces the WDF Executive Recommendations which were adopted in the 11th WDF Conference - held on Monday 30th November 1998 Frimley Green, Surrey, England.

Executive Recommendation No 3.

"After a discussion on Tie-Breaker interpretations it was agreed that where two teams are still tied after the completion of Round Robin matchplay and the comparison of legs-differences, then the result of the actual match between the two teams in the Round Robin matchplay shall be used to break the tie."

It was clarified that the ‘play-offs’ rule relating to a tie between more than two teams will remain unchanged.

Executive Recommendation No 4.

"That prior to WDF Cups the ‘host’ country will stage a meeting with all Team Mangers to ensure that all items requiring their co-operation during the running of the tournament are clearly understood by every one involved. If available at the tournament in question a WDF Executive shall be in attendance at the same meeting."

This has been introduced as new Rule No 26.00 - Team Managers Meetings, other Rule numbers have been adjusted accordingly.

Dave Alderman

Co-ordinator

1st September 1999.

 

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