"Look at the World Grand Prix, which always struggles for ticket sales": Nathan Aspinall calls for changes to 'repetitive' PDC formats
PDC
Nathan Aspinall has called for the PDC to make widespread changes to what in his view is a fairly repetitive tour. 'The Asp' said that in reality a Royal Rumble isn't the answer as it doesn't work for bringing the big names over to simply just play 501 and that's it.
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But Aspinall believes it could work if it was a big money exhibition and players were guaranteed the cash. Albeit this was part of a wider debate from Aspinall who believes the formats need replacing widely in majors. Gerwyn Price himself devised a concept for Premier League changes.
“I would love to take part in something like a Royal Rumble, but I don't think it would work, really," said Aspinall to 247bet. "You couldn't have it as a ranking event anyway. It would have to be an exhibition event if you're going to do something like that.
“You have to try it without the big stakes at first. As fun as it would be, I think it would need to stay as an exhibition-type event rather than a PDC ranking event. And if it’s an exhibition, then they probably wouldn’t be able get enough money to attract the players to travel from all over to play in it.
“You wouldn’t get the commitment from the top players. Imagine trying to get Michael van Gerwen to fly over from Holland for one leg of 501. If he gets beat, he's only getting about 500 quid. That’s just not happening, is it?
In particular Aspinall would also change the World Grand Prix for instance which has got better ticket sales wise, but until the Littler boom it very much didn't provide the sales in Leicester when it was moved from Dublin and it has often been conjecture where fans and pundits have called for it to return to its spiritual home without a suitable venue.
Aspinall wants PDC changes.
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But over a venue, Aspinall sees it as needing to be changed entirely format wise. “However, I do think they need to start changing some of the formats. I'm a darts player, that's my job now, but before that a darts fan, and the tour is getting so repetitive, in my opinion. It's best of 11 all the time. Look at the World Grand Prix, which always struggles for ticket sales. It's double-in, double-out and best of three sets.
“It's been the same for years. I do think there's scope to change it. What that change looks like, I don't know. Do you change it to 701? Do you make it a bit more cut-throat and do double-in, double-out 301 over a short format?”
Premier League to change? Aspinall bangs the drum
The Premier League too he saw as needing to be changed with the tournament format and the main eight growing stale to some. Barry Hearn and Matt Porter have often mooted changes before sometimes even going back on it to say it is unlikely to change too much due to the broadcaster and fans wanting to see a winner in the arena.
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"I don’t know exactly what the changes should be, but I do think there's the room to change some things, definitely. Darts is booming. We should be making every event as exciting as possible and selling out everything.
“The Premier League has to change next year too. It has to. And not just so I can get in. I think there are enough players and enough depth now to extend it to 10, 12 or even 16 players. I do think some changes need to be made in some tournaments just to give them a spark of life. Let's try to do something to freshen it up.”
Samuel GillChief Content Officer
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
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