"Focus seems to be shifting toward this nonsense"- Whistling and football chants overshadow Dutch Darts Championship

This past weekend, the Dutch Darts Championship marked its return to Autotron Rosmalen as the seventh stop on the 2025 European Tour. Jonny Clayton emerged victorious, edging out Niko Springer 8–6 in a closely contested final. While the tournament delivered plenty of drama and excitement on the oche, the atmosphere off it has drawn significant criticism from within the darts community.

Throughout the weekend, crowd behaviour became a major talking point—particularly the treatment of non-Dutch players, who were consistently booed during their matches. Even in clashes between two Dutchmen, the audience often heavily favoured one player, leaving the other to face jeers and whistles.

Observers noted that the atmosphere in the venue frequently resembled that of a football match more than a darts event. Chants like “Never go to Arnhem again” (popular among NEC Nijmegen fans) and “Nothing at all in Amsterdam” (an anti-Ajax slogan) echoed through the hall, much to the dismay of purists.

Former professional Vincent van der Voort didn’t mince words. “It might be entertaining for some, but it has absolutely nothing to do with darts,” he said on the Darts Draait Door podcast. “This kind of behaviour is becoming more and more common, and I think it’s a real shame. You can’t stop it, but unfortunately, the focus seems to be shifting toward this nonsense. And that constant whistling… For me, the low point was the match between Dirk van Duijvenbode and Wessel Nijman. Wessel was booed out of the building. Then, just four hours later, he had to play again—and suddenly the crowd was cheering for him. As a player, lying in your hotel room at night, what must you be thinking? There are so many clueless people in the audience—it’s hard to see it any other way.”

Darts reporter Damian Vlottes shared similar concerns. “The same thing happened during the match between Raymond van Barneveld and Jerry Hendriks,” he noted. “That one might have been even more heartbreaking. Jerry is one of the most likeable guys on tour and was playing on a big stage for the first time in six years. And yet he was booed during his return. That’s completely unnecessary. How can you treat one of your own countrymen like that? The fact that this still happens in 2025 is honestly quite sad.”