| 2018 Unibet European Championship | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tournament information | |||
| Dates | 25–28 October 2018 | ||
| Venue | Westfalenhallen | ||
| Location | Dortmund | ||
| Country |  Germany | ||
| Organisation(s) | PDC | ||
| Format | Legs | ||
| Prize fund | £400,000 | ||
| Winner's share | £100,000 | ||
| High checkout | 170 Michael van Gerwen(first round) | ||
| Champion(s) | |||
 James Wade | |||
| |||
The2018Unibet European Championship was the eleventh edition of theProfessional Darts Corporation'sEuropean Championship tournament, which saw the top players from thethirteen European tour events compete against each other. The tournament took place from 25 to 28 October 2018 at theWestfalenhallen inDortmund,Germany.
Michael van Gerwen was the four-time defending champion, after defeatingRob Cross 11–7 inthe 2017 final. However, he lost againstSteve West 7–10 in the second round, ending a 21-game unbeaten run. It meant thatPhil Taylor still holds the record of the longest unbeaten run in this tournament (22 matches). As of 2024, van Gerwen's win againstPaul Nicholson marks the last time the tournament's defending champion won their first round match.
For the first time in the history of this tournament, no Dutch player reached the quarter-finals.
James Wade became European Champion for the first time and won his first ranking major since 2011 after beatingSimon Whitlock 11–8 in the final.
The 2018 European Championship will have a total prize fund of £400,000, equal the amount of the last staging of the tournament.[1] The following is the breakdown of the fund:
| Position(no. of players) | Prize money (Total: £400,000) | |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | (1) | £100,000 |
| Runner-up | (1) | £40,000 |
| Semi-finalists | (2) | £20,000 |
| Quarter-finalists | (4) | £15,000 |
| Last 16 (second round) | (8) | £10,000 |
| Last 32 (first round) | (16) | £5,000 |
The 2018 tournament continues the new system in terms of qualification with the two previous editions: The top 32 players from the European Tour Order of Merit, which is solely based on prize money won in thethirteen European tour events during the season, qualifying for the tournament.
In a change from previous years, the draw was done in a fixed bracket by their seeded order with the top qualifier playing the 32nd, the second playing the 31st and so on.
The following players will take part in the tournament:
Michael van Gerwen(second round)
Mensur Suljović(first round)
Gerwyn Price(quarter-finals)Ian White(first round)Joe Cullen(semi-finals)James Wade (champion)Max Hopp(semi-finals)
Simon Whitlock(runner-up)
Peter Wright(second round)Jonny Clayton(first round)
Daryl Gurney(first round)Michael Smith(second round)Rob Cross(quarter-finals)Adrian Lewis(first round)Darren Webster(quarter-finals)Steve West(quarter-finals)Mervyn King(first round)Stephen Bunting(first round)Dave Chisnall(second round)Danny Noppert(first round)
Steve Lennon(first round)Ricky Evans(second round)James Wilson(second round)Jermaine Wattimena(first round)Steve Beaton(first round)William O'Connor(first round)Martin Schindler(first round)Jelle Klaasen(first round)Richard North(second round)Kyle Anderson(first round)
Cristo Reyes(second round)Paul Nicholson(first round)