"I'm not confident he'll ever return to the tour" - Dimitri Van den Bergh faces potential end to PDC career at just 32

Less than three years after defeating Luke Humphries to win the UK Open, Dimitri Van den Bergh is approaching what could be the final PDC ranking event of his career. The two-time major champion, still only 32, faces the near-certain loss of his Tour Card unless he can qualify for the PDC World Darts Championship on 30 November and then produce an extraordinary run at Alexandra Palace.

The Belgian's collapse has prompted serious doubts about whether he will ever reclaim his place on the professional circuit. On the latest DartsNews Podcast, Nicolas Gayer admitted he has little confidence in a comeback, while Samuel Gill questioned whether Van den Bergh would even attempt Q-School in January.

Van den Bergh's rise through the PDC ranks began with consecutive World Youth Championship titles in 2017 and 2018. His breakthrough on the senior circuit came at the 2020 World Matchplay, where he defeated Gary Anderson 18-10 in the final to claim his first major.

He returned to the Matchplay final the following year, losing to Peter Wright, before reaching the World Championship semi-finals in 2023. His second major title arrived at the 2024 UK Open, where he survived a remarkable comeback from reigning world champion Humphries and six missed championship darts before eventually prevailing 11-10.

Even in February 2025, Van den Bergh was still capable of producing memorable moments on television, hitting a nine-darter against Michael van Gerwen during a run to the World Masters semi-finals. Now, his place on the PDC Tour is hanging by a thread.

Although Van den Bergh remains 60th on the Order of Merit with £135,500 in ranking prize money, he has failed to qualify for either the Grand Slam of Darts or Players Championship Finals. With the money earned at those tournaments in 2024 about to expire, alongside a further £25,000 from the previous World Championship, his position is considerably more precarious than the current rankings suggest.

Altogether, £40,250 is due to disappear from his total, leaving him with £95,250 before any new earnings are considered. As such, provisional calculations place the Belgian outside the top 64 required to retain a Tour Card, with the eventual cut-off dependent on results elsewhere.

His final four Players Championship appearances of 2026 all ended in first-round defeats. The last two were particularly alarming: consecutive 6-0 losses against Joe Hunt and Rob Owen in Leicester, with averages of 71.81 and 75.91 respectively.

Another setback followed at the Grand Slam qualifier on 6 November. Van den Bergh averaged 73.28 in a 5-2 defeat to fellow Belgian Stefaan Henderyck, ending any hope of returning to Wolverhampton.

With the World Championship Tour Card Holder Qualifier approaching, those performances have left little indication that Van den Bergh is capable of the turnaround he requires.

"It's a shame to see a player of that calibre just fall off a cliff as he has," Samuel Gill said on the latest DartsNews Podcast. "It doesn't look like there's going to be a way back, really. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't even play Q-School in January and takes a year off to sort everything out."

The Belgian's difficulties stretch back well beyond his recent defeats in Leicester. In April 2025, Van den Bergh withdrew from a Players Championship event shortly before his scheduled match against Jose de Sousa and subsequently took a break from professional darts. He returned alongside Mike De Decker at the World Cup of Darts in June, but made clear that he did not intend to resume his previous full-time schedule.

Family life had become a greater priority, with Van den Bergh acknowledging the strain his playing commitments had placed on him away from the oche. He subsequently encountered problems with the throwing action that had served him throughout his career.

Speaking after defeating Alan Soutar at the Baltic Sea Darts Open in May 2026, Van den Bergh revealed that tension in his arm and fingers had affected his ability to throw naturally towards the end of the previous year. He described losing control of his throwing action and subsequently adopting a three-finger grip shortly before the UK Open in an attempt to address the problem.

The victory over Soutar ended a 418-day wait for a European Tour win, offering encouragement that the adjustment might eventually pay off. But there was no sustained improvement. Following another lengthy spell without official competition, Van den Bergh returned in September before suffering further defeats over the closing weeks of the ProTour season.

During Friday's podcast, Kieran Wood raised the possibility of an extended break giving the former major champion an opportunity to rebuild, pointing to players who had returned after spending time away from the circuit.

"Do you actually think this is the end for Van den Bergh now?" Wood asked. "We've seen in the past people like Barney retire, have a year off, come back. Cristo Reyes has gone away for a few years and he's come back stronger. Even Adrian Lewis now, he's had that time off, and you see him in exhibitions averaging over 110 and things like that."

"It looks like a long way back for Dimitri now," Wood continued. "But do you feel like after that year, where he just has time to himself, he resets, stops overthinking things, he can get back to some kind of form and get back on the tour?"

Nicolas Gayer considered the distinction between a loss of confidence and an underlying technical problem particularly significant. Van den Bergh's own explanation of his throwing difficulties gives that question added weight, although the precise cause of his current struggles remains unclear.

"I think it's always important, and of course we don't know that, but it would be important to know where the big issue is," Gayer explained. "If it's all based on an injury and him not being able to throw a dart like he was able to for 10 or 20 years, then that's a different discussion compared to him just being in a low or having too much going on."

Gayer made no claim to know Van den Bergh's present medical circumstances, but was concerned about the consequences if the Belgian could no longer reproduce his established action.

"If you have to rework your whole technique, that can be very, very difficult, and that can lead to you not being able to throw darts on that certain level ever again," he warned.

Despite recognising Van den Bergh's ability, Gayer could see little reason for optimism. "We all know that he has the game in himself, and I think if he wants to throw darts at that level, if there aren't any injury issues or anything, he should be able to get back to that level," he said. "But I don't know. I'm not too confident that he will ever be coming back onto the tour."

Even if Van den Bergh decides to fight for his professional status in January, his two major titles would offer no advantage at Q-School. Players must negotiate several days of floor competition against a field of established former professionals and emerging talents, with Tour Cards available through automatic qualifying places and the Q-School rankings.

Gill believes that environment presents a particular challenge for a player whose greatest achievements have come under the television lights. "You've got to think with Dimi, he is a big-stage player," he argued. "He's always struggled on the floor. That's why in the past, he's barely qualified for events based on his ProTour ranking. He's barely won many ProTour titles."

Van den Bergh has enjoyed success away from television, but his World Matchplay and UK Open victories have defined his career. Recovering the consistency required to survive several days at Q-School would be a very different challenge from producing an inspired performance in a televised major.

"You have to go through the school of hard knocks, which is Q-School, which is a floor event," Gill continued. "It favours floor players who are very good on the floor. Do I expect him to rock up to Q-School, where he's not very good on the floor, and win a Tour Card? Probably not."

Nathan Aspinall provides one example of a player rebuilding his career after losing professional status, returning through Q-School before going on to win major titles. Gill acknowledged that precedent, although he considered the circumstances very different.

"The only positive example I'll perhaps use is Nathan Aspinall," he said. "But of course, Nathan was at the front end of his career. He was very new to the sport when he lost his Tour Card and then came back."

For Van den Bergh, January would mean attempting to reclaim a position he has held for more than a decade, having already experienced the expectations that accompany winning major tournaments and reaching the world's top five. "I don't see him massively coming back," Gill admitted. "I see him perhaps trying once to come back and then maybe fading away and not playing again."

There is no indication that Van den Bergh has decided whether to enter Q-School. His previous decision to step away from the relentless professional schedule, however, makes the possibility of another break relevant.

Van den Bergh's troubles have unfolded during a difficult period for several other familiar names. Peter Wright has struggled for consistency, Michael Smith's ranking position has come under pressure, and Raymond van Barneveld has faced his own battle to secure major appearances. Gary Anderson, by contrast, has continued to produce high-quality performances despite playing a more limited schedule.

"We're going through a stage now where the crop of players that we watched growing up are kind of all going," Gill reflected. "Of course it's all about making new stars, but it still doesn't make it great when a player like Van den Bergh just falls away."

Unlike some of the veterans confronting the later stages of their careers, Van den Bergh is only 32. His second major title came at 29, and his World Masters semi-final was less than two years ago.

Gill admitted that he had never particularly enjoyed the Belgian's elaborate on-stage routines, including his attempts to compose himself during matches. Nevertheless, he found the decline difficult to watch. "When he was at his prime, I didn't really like watching him," he said. "It's kind of sad to see, and the same could be said for Peter Wright in particular."

Whatever happens next, Van den Bergh's World Matchplay and UK Open trophies will remain significant achievements. The question of how much more he could have accomplished is a different matter.

"He will always be a bit of a what-if story, albeit as a man who has won multiple major titles," Gill admitted. "If he retires tomorrow, he's had a great career. But it would be a massive shame."

Van den Bergh's immediate future now rests on the World Championship Tour Card Holder Qualifier in Leicester, where at least four places at Alexandra Palace will be available on 30 November.

Qualifying would only be the beginning of his escape attempt. Based on the provisional ranking calculations, he would probably need to win at least two World Championship matches to give himself a realistic chance of retaining his Tour Card. One victory could still leave him dependent on results elsewhere.

Failing to qualify would instead leave him outside the projected top 64, with Q-School offering the most direct opportunity to reclaim professional status in January.

Gill did not rule out Van den Bergh eventually finding his way back, particularly after a prolonged break from the competitive circuit. "I wouldn't be shocked if he gets through a few qualifiers for events and rolls back the years," he conceded. "But I also wouldn't be shocked if he takes a break and just fades away into obscurity for a bit, then maybe comes back like Benito van de Pas or Cristo Reyes, where the break did him good."

Van den Bergh has made no retirement announcement, and losing a Tour Card would not prevent him from seeking future opportunities through other PDC qualifying routes.

Nevertheless, should he fail in Leicester and decide against Q-School, 30 November could be his final appearance on the professional circuit for an extended period, perhaps even his last.

There is little room for another performance in the 70s. A player who defeated reigning world champion Luke Humphries for the UK Open title in March 2024 now faces the prospect of having to qualify for another World Championship simply to preserve his professional career.

It is an extraordinary reversal for a two-time major champion whose next appearance in Leicester could determine whether he remains part of the PDC Tour at all.