Darts icon Michael Van Gerwen has revealed that he is in favor of the World Darts Championship moving from its former home at Ally Pally to Saudi Arabia.
With the recent rise of sporting events in the Gulf State, former PDC president Barry Hearn previously suggested that darts should come to the Middle East. As LIV Golf, the Spanish Super Cup and boxing matches triumph in the kingdom, the darts community has divided to follow suit.
Speaking to DailyMail.com on Thursday, Mighty Mike revealed that bringing the sport to Saudi Arabia could prove beneficial.
“I think it will be great,” he said. ‘They want to make sports big in that country. You saw the big boxing games there, the football there. I don’t care where I play. “I’ll be competing and that’s how it is.”
While speaking about the growth of the sport, the Dutchman praised 17-year-old star Luke Littler and how he helped expand the darts audience. Littler rose to stardom earlier this year and is 2-2 with Van Gerwen in the Premier Darts League so far.
Michael Van Gerwen said he is not opposed to the World Darts Championship moving to Saudi Arabia.
Van Gerwen also praised darts star Luke Littler, 17, for helping to grow the sport globally.
“I was the same age as him (when I started), my problem was that in my time we didn’t have social media,” Van Gerwen joked. “We only had MSN.”
“I’m a little older, I could be his father,” he added. ‘He will also face many new things. He has a new girlfriend. He still lives with his mother and his father. He will take steps in his life that will change the way he thinks. Right now, the only thing you should care about is darts. For me, the first thing I worry about is my own children, my wife, and then come the darts.’
After winning the US Masters in 2023, with an impressive 8-0 finish in the final, Van Gerwen returns to New York to compete in front of an American audience at Madison Square Garden this weekend.
After a successful run in the tournament last year, he shared his excitement about playing at the historic venue again. Furthermore, he praised the PDC for creating a good lineup as the sport takes over the Big Apple.
Littler rose to stardom in 2024 and has two wins over Ven Gerwen in the PL
Saudi Arabia has been very successful in hosting major sporting events in recent years.
The kingdom hosted boxing matches, LIV Golf and the Spanish Super Cup
“(I’m) looking forward to it,” he told DailyMail.com. ‘The environment is absolutely amazing. The PDC did a great job to bring darts back to the most iconic place in the world. All the big sports have been there and you want to perform there, it’s that simple.
“I think this year’s field is quite strong, as is the Premier League, of course. The PDC did very well with this lineup and this country deserves it, it deserves the best. We played in the best place. You want competing against the best to make the sport bigger, and that’s really important.”
Throughout his long career, Van Gerwen was decorated with three World Championships, three World Grand Prix victories and three Grand Slams. Additionally, he won the Premier League and the Players Championship seven times in addition to five Masters victories.
Van Gerwen has three World Championship wins and six World Grands Prix
Last year, the Dutchman went 8-0 to win the US Masters in New York.
He also held the number one spot on several occasions between 2014 and 2021, while racking up 24 nine-darter finishes in the PDC. Now in his 18th year on the tour, Van Gerwen is certainly surprised by the growth of the sport.
“It took the PDC ten years to recover it in China,” he said. ‘Sometimes things take time. Americans love sports, so you have to respect them.
‘I think there is room for improvement (in darts) here in this great country. I think a lot of good darts players come out of here, but it’s not easy to be a professional.’
‘I have been in the PDC for 18 years, that is quite a long time. I’ve been everywhere. I’ve been to all the best places, the nice places, the best places when you didn’t have much money, when you didn’t have to book the best hotels. Now we are in New York. That’s how fast darts can grow. And I think the people behind (the scenes), the PDC and Matchroom did a phenomenal job.”