Schindler masters the start and breaks his own record

Schindler breaks his own World Cup record

German hopeful marches into the second round

Germany’s best darts professional starts confidently at the Darts World Cup. His starting situation is better than ever.

Hopeful Martin Schindler has confidently mastered his opening hurdle at the Darts World Cup in London. The 29-year-old from Strausberg defeated Englishman Stephen Burton 3-1 at Alexandra Palace on Wednesday evening and became the fifth German to reach the second round.

“If you win in Germany, you are the hero. If you lose, you are immediately the loser,” Schindler said before the tournament – and at least the start made the German fans positive.

Schindler came into the match well and took on the world number 67. confidently the first sentence. After a slump in the second round, he turned things around from the third set onwards, won six legs in a row and used his first match dart to win. The average of 99.14 is a personal record at the World Cup for the German.

After Niko Springer’s surprising exit on Tuesday, Schindler is considered a great hope for his seventh World Cup participation, ranked 13th in the world rankings. He starts off higher than any German before him at the highlight of the year. Next the German number one will have to deal with the Irish Keane Barry or Tim Pusey from Australia.

The 29-year-old has never made it past the third round of the World Cup in London. In his first three tournaments he was eliminated in round one. He won one game each in 2023 and 2024 before losing his opening game again in 2025.

Before Schindler’s start, debutant Arno Merk, former World Cup semi-finalist Gabriel Clemens and Ricardo Pietreczko, among others, ensured German victories in London.