THE Jenningsbet World Seniors Matchplay Darts will return to York Barbican on the weekend of  October 4-5 next year.

New ground was broken when York welcomed the 2023 edition in September, the first time that a major darts tournament had been held at the Barbican.

Dancing Texan Leonard Gates will be seeking to retain the title that he won this autumn, having defeated Jim McEwan 9-6 in the final to claim his third straight WSDT TV title.

On the other hand, two-time champion Robert Thornton will be on a revenge tour as he seeks to regain the crown after a disappointing 2023 tournament saw him fail to overcome current Lakeside World Champion Neil Duff in the First Round.

Legendary 16-time World Champion Phil “The Power” Taylor heads the tournament bill in his bid for a first Seniors Darts title – and will be itching to add to his glittering trophy cabinet.

Glen Durrant’s resurgence on the oche will also continue in 2024, and he will be joined by 10-time World Champion Trina Gulliver, the sport’s greatest female player of all time.t

The 2023 line-up also included three-time BDO World Champion Martin “Wolfie” Adams., Scott Mitchell and Senior Masters Champion David Cameron.

Matches will be played using the leg format, with the winner needing to be two legs clear at the winning post. If that is not achieved, a game can be extended if necessary for a maximum of six extra legs before a tie-break is required.

Both the First Round and the Quarter Finals will be played to the best of 15 legs, and the Semi Final and Final the best of 17 legs.

This year’s competition saw the finalists share £15,000 of the competition’s £31,000 total prize fund.

Billy Lovell of the World Seniors Darts Tour said: “We are delighted to be returning to the York Barbican for the World Seniors Matchplay.

“2023’s event had such great support, with the venue loved by the fans and the players, we can’t wait to return and make 2024’s event is even bigger and better”.

Tickets for the event are available via the York Barbican website.