“I hadn’t realised what had gone on” - Referee Huw Ware doubts lasting needle between Littler and Van Veen following Premier League spat

The commotion around Luke Littler and Gian van Veen appears to have been short-lived. According to top referee Huw Ware, both players will get a “clean slate” at their next meeting in the Premier League Darts.

During Night Nine of the Premier League Darts 2026 in Manchester, tensions ran high when Littler and Van Veen faced off in a repeat of the 2026 World Championship final. Both players missed match darts, and emotions visibly flared. Van Veen eventually edged it, but not without a minor altercation on stage, with plenty of remonstrating on both sides.

Remarkably, referee Ware saw little of the incident. “From my perspective, I didn’t really know what had happened until I got off the stage,” he explained to SunSport. “I was looking at the dart board. The first thing I saw was after Gian took his darts out and Luke was geeing up the crowd, and I thought, ‘Oh, he’s geeing up the crowd, there we are.’”

Only afterwards did the Welshman hear what had gone on between the two. Even so, he saw no reason to step in. “I hadn’t realised what had gone on between them. I couldn’t see that anyway,” Ware said. “It wasn’t anything for me to get involved with, no. Not really. Everything was fine. They were both very professional in the sense that they both shook hands.”

According to the experienced arbiter, it’s also unlikely the tensions will linger heading into the next night in Brighton. In his view, this kind of friction is part of elite sport and usually short-lived. “In my experience, whenever two players have a bit of needle between them, no matter how bad it is, the next game that they play with each other, the next game is absolutely fine.”

Ware stresses that he always stays neutral as a referee, regardless of previous events. “It’s a clean slate. As a referee, you’re impartial. I can’t take sides as far as who is the right and who is in the wrong. If I refereed for them this week and something happened, then I personally would be treating it as a clean slate. I don’t have any kind of preconceived notions or agendas against anybody when I’m up there.”

There’s a chance Littler and Van Veen meet again, potentially as early as the semifinals, provided they win their opening matches against Stephen Bunting and Michael van Gerwen respectively. That would add extra spice, although Ware expects it to be sporting.

Beyond the incident, the arbiter also spoke at length about Littler’s impact on the sport. The young Englishman delivers fireworks on stage and keeps officials sharp with his unpredictability. “Luke used to throw me every game when he first came along. He can still do now,” Ware admits. “He loves doing double 15, so going for treble 18 on 84 with one dart left is quite uncommon. Now I’m ready for it, I think I’m better now in that respect.”

Ware believes Littler’s influence extends far beyond his game. The teenage sensation has given darts a massive boost in popularity, especially among youngsters. “Luke Littler came along, and the sport changed, and it’s continuing to change,” he states. “I’ve been to academy visits over the last month or so, and I cannot believe the amount of kids that are there. I wish that was there when I was a kid, I really do.”

He compares it to his own youth, when darts was far less mainstream. “It’s done a complete 180 compared to when I was in school. I wasn’t strange for loving darts, but it was just a bit niche. No one else understood it. I had nobody else in the school to relate to as far as that’s concerned.”

A recent visit to a primary school made a big impression on Ware. “The first mention of Luke Littler, everyone went ‘Oh’, like that, and it was amazing.”

He implicitly refers to legends like Phil Taylor, who dominated the sport for years but never generated the same youth-driven hype Littler enjoys now. According to Ware, it’s that relatability and young age that make Littler such an inspiring figure. “The global impact and the partnership opportunities that have exploded all because of Luke Littler coming along, this 16-year-old at the time, showing all these kids that they can conquer the world, no matter what age they are. That’s why all these kids look up to him.”

The mix of sporting success, charisma, and media attention has opened darts up to a completely new audience. And while incidents like the one with Van Veen add a touch of extra tension, the overall trend is clear: the sport is on the rise, with Littler as its figurehead. For now, the focus shifts back to the action.