In late 2009, the
PDC offered to purchase rival darts organisation, the
British Darts Organisation (BDO), an offer which was rejected. Following the BDO's rejection of the buyout, the PDC chose to expand in the 2010 season by creating the
World Cup of Darts, World Youth Championship and the short-lived
PDC Women's World Darts Championship. The knockout stages of the first edition of the World Youth Championship (then called the PDC World Under-21 Championship) were held in 2010, with the first final being held on 3 January 2011, the day of the senior final. The highest-ranked players under the age of 21 were invited to compete in the knockout, alongside international qualifiers and players who won competitions at
Rileys sports bars.
Michael van Gerwen and
Arron Monk were the first finalists, with Monk winning the inaugural final 6–4. The game saw Monk go 5–4 ahead via an unusual 121 checkout with the first dart thrown at the 17 segment. The tournament shifted to its current position in the calendar, with the final held on the final day of the
Players Championship Finals. Here,
Max Hopp became the first German (and first player from outside England) to win the World Youth Championship, beating
Nathan Aspinall 6–5 in a tight final which remained on throw until the final leg, where both players had match darts. In 2016, Hopp's title defence was stopped by fellow German
Martin Schindler, who himself was beaten by eventual champion
Corey Cadby. In 2017, Dimitri van den Bergh won the title, becoming the first player to record a three-dart average over 100 in the final. He repeated this feat in 2018, becoming the first player to win the title twice. The 2018 tournament also saw a shift from the previous format of a straight knockout tournament to the inclusion of a group stage in the first round, as the tournament expanded to 96 players. In 2019,
Luke Humphries became the second future senior World Champion to win the World Youth Championship, beating 17-year-old
Adam Gawlas, who qualified for the tournament despite having only played darts for nine months at the time. In 2020, the
COVID-19 pandemic meant that the Players Championship Finals (and thus the World Youth Championship final) were moved from their regular location in Minehead to the
Ricoh Arena in
Coventry, where
Bradley Brooks won the title. In 2021, the size of the field was reduced and the tournament was played on a single day in Minehead.
Ted Evetts became the only player to win in the one-day format, as the tournament returned to its previous schedule in 2022. Northern Irish player and future
World Cup winner
Josh Rock broke the streak of English winners in 2022, recording the highest three-dart average in a World Youth Championship final to date, 104.13. Rock's title defence in 2023 was ended by eventual runner-up
Gian van Veen, who was defeated in the final by
Luke Littler. Despite being eligible to compete until 2031, Littler opted not to defend his title in the 2024 edition, which expanded from 96 to 128 players. In Littler's absence, Gian van Veen became the first Dutch champion. Littler's
2025 World Championship victory meant that for the first time, the World Youth Champion was older than World Champion. Littler returned to the competition in 2025, but was unexpectedly defeated in a semi-final by
Beau Greaves, who became the first female finalist. The Greaves–Littler match was notable for its quality, with both players averaging over 105 and Littler praising his rival on social media after the match, pointing out he had "two 10-dart legs, missed double 12 for a nine and still couldn’t win". Despite her semi-final performance, Greaves went on to lose the final to defending champion van Veen, who was appearing in a record third final. His victory made him the second player to defend the title. ==Finals==