The PDC World Darts Championship is on the horizon.

One of the hottest-anticipated tournaments on the entire sporting calendar in the United Kingdom, the World Championshipkicks off at Alexandra Palace on December 15 and runs until the grand finale on January 3.

The latest renewal looks set to be on a knife edge, with last year’s finalists Luke Littler and Luke Humphries inseparable in the PDC World Championship odds—both coming in as the 5/2 joint-favourites for the Sid Waddel Trophy.

Such is the nature of the tournament, with its electric atmosphere and extremely high stakes, that upsets can happen at any stage at Ally Pally. With that in mind, let’s take a look at three outsiders that could cause a stir at the upcoming World Darts Championship.

Michael Smith – 16/1

He might be second in the PDC’s Order of Merit, but Michael Smith is a 16/1 outsider to claim a second World Darts Championship this year.

The Englishman stunned three-time World Champion Michael van Gerwen with a 7-4 victory in the 2023 final, landing just his second Premier Event after winning the Grand Slam of Darts in the same year.

‘Bully Boy’, who won the World Cup of Darts alongside Humphries in the summer, has been runner-up in the World Championship on two occasions and could go on a good run this year if he can produce his best form.

Mike De Decker – 22/1

Ranked 25 by the PDC, Mike De Decker has potentially hit career-best form at the perfect time after picking up his first Premier Event recently.

The 28-year-old Belgian caused one of the upsets of the season when going all the way to the final of the World Grand Prix in October, ultimately defeating Humphries 6-4 in Leicester.

De Decker, who also beat his fellow countryman Dimitri Van den Bergh, James Wade, and Gary Anderson en route to his maiden major victory, has never progressed further than the second round in four World Championship appearances. But momentum could carry him this year.

Michael van Gerwen – 6/1

Not an outsider per se, but odds of 6/1 in the darts bettingmarket seem like exceptional value for a player of Van Gerwen’s calibre.

Indeed, ‘Might Mike’ hasn’t exactly been his indomitable self in recent seasons and hasn’t got his hands on the World Championship since completing the hat-trick in 2019.

However, Van Gerwen has knocked on the door in a couple of Premier Events this season, finishing runner-up in The Masters and World Matchplay and winning some silverware in the Dutch Darts Masters, as well as the Players Championship, bouncing back from defeat in the Grand Prix.

The Dutchman has a formidable record at Ally Pally, finishing runner-up on three occasions as well as his hat-trick of victories, and it would be foolish to rule him it.

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While Humphries and Littler are undoubtedly the players to beat at this year’s World Championship, an upset is never off the table at Ally Pally and Van Gerwen, Van De Decker or Smith could be this year’s dark horses.

Sports betting has a fairly long history (with first reports dating back to betting on horse racing in the 18th century), but with betting now more accessible than ever throughonline sportsbooks and handy mobile apps, the pastime has gained unprecedented popularity in the modern age.Betting on sports is attracting plenty of new punters who arelooking to try their hand at one of the best ways to elevate your sports experience.

There’s no doubt about it, sports betting is thrilling. Clinging to the edge of your seat as the horses hammer down the racetrack, or your favourite team pounds a shot toward the goal, and wondering if all those stakes you have on your bet will finally come home certainly adds a level of excitement and engagement to sports that can’t really be found anywhere else. However, for beginners to the world of sports betting, it’s important to know the key tenets to keep yourself safe and make the experience even more enjoyable!

This article runs through five of the best tips and tricks for newcomers to sports betting to guide them on their betting journey.

#1 Understand the Basics of Sports Betting

As with any hobby, getting started without the basics willonly lead to fumbling in the dark. It’s essential that any newcomer to the world of sports betting gets to grips with all the key terms, and with those down, that mystical jargon on your favourite football betting site in Ireland will—like magic—all become clear.

Odds

At the heart of any betting experience, there are odds. In short, these represent the likelihood of a particular outcomeoccurring and dictate how much you’ll earn if your bet comes in. Odds come in a couple of forms, including

Types of Bets

The next key element is the different kinds of bets available. These are important to familiarise yourself with as, unlike odds, most aren’t quite as intuitive to guess by name.

#2 Set a Budget and Stick To It

It’s easy to get carried away when you’re having fun, but one of the biggest errors new bettors make is bad money management. The key to having fun betting is to never bet more than you can comfortably afford to lose. While there’s always a chance that a bet might come in, if you’re betting for fun, you should treat every bet as a lost one when it comes to bankroll management.

When you’re starting out, pre-set a monthly or weekly betting limit so that you can have fun without that niggle in the back of your mind that losing might spell disaster.

Of course, this only works if you stay disciplined. It’s important not to bet off emotions alone, and not to chase up losses with a bigger bet (a harmful habit that can be costly). As long as you stick to your sensible rules, you’re sure to have a fun time and be able to maintain a sustainable betting habit.

#3 Research and Analyse Before Placing Bets

Any semi-successful sports bettor knows the importance of research before placing a bet. Without doing your due diligence before putting money on the line, it’s easy to place terrible value bets and these avoidable losses quickly add up and take the fun out of the game.

However, it’s easy to avoid some of the simplest mistakes with a little bit of research and analysis before you lay your bet—a process that can quickly become part of the enjoyment. Some simple ones to tick off are predicted weather conditions, injury reports, and the expected team line-ups. This is a simple way to avoid betting on a player to score the first goal when they’ve just been put out for injury!

For more in-depth analysis, investigate current forms and,in team sports, the results of previous head-to-heads. A star horse could be running badly this season or a specific match-up might result in surprising results for an underdog team.

Make sure you stick to trusted, reliable resources for accurate information and check out some well–knowntipsters for detailed yet comprehensive analysis.

#4 Start Small—Focus on Single Bets

One of the best rules for newcomers is not to get ahead of yourself. When you’re still learning, it’s important to start small—avoid parlays and complex bets and focus on the smaller moving parts, a well-researched single line bet is far more satisfying when it pays off than fumbling your way through a doomed accumulator. Stick to smaller value bets so you can try your hand at different tactics while keeping your bankroll healthy.

#5 Track Your Bets and Learn From Each Outcome

Many people already track a lot of things in their life—their sleep, fitness journeys, daily runs—so it’s only sensible to turn to this with a new hobby. While you might think you’re remembering everything, getting specifics down on paper can turn up surprising results. Dig through your previous wins and losses and excavate all the gritty details of what went wrong and how you made things go right.

Spreadsheets are a favourite of our pros to track their progress, and they’re great for managing bankroll, too, as well as keeping tabs on winners, losers, and much more!