"Nathan Aspinall is probably the one that's the most disappointed" - Aspinall Premier League Darts snub the thing to 'fire him up' for explosive 2026 campaign

The Premier League Darts lineup has had numerous darts fans discussing and debriefing who should have been in and who were unfortunate to miss out. One of the unlucky ones was Nathan Aspinall, who was not rewarded after a positive 2025 on the oche.

He won three Euro Tour titles while topping the European Tour Order of Merit by a landslide while also making it to the Players Championship Finals final, losing out 11-8 to Luke Littler. A number of impressive performances have caught the eye of many, but obviously not the PDC who have snubbed him of a return to the Premier League.

Paul Nicholson has had his say on the situation, admitting that he felt that 'The Asp' was the most hard-done by. "Out of everybody who's been omitted, Nathan Aspinall is probably the one that's the most disappointed," he stated, while reminiscing on what he brough to the event last year.

"When you think about what he did in the Premier League in 2025, how exciting it was to watch him every single week, and how much he gave to every single week he played, I think he'll feel very hard done by."

It was an opposite of last year, where fans echoed their bemusement when the former World Matchplay champion was among the eight in the event. Nevertheless, he proved them wrong by culminating in the top four, reaching finals night before losing out to Luke Humphries in the semi-final.

"After reaching the play-offs despite all the controversy over his selection in 2025, he must have been thinking a good season away from the Premier League would easily be enough to seal his inclusion for 2026," Nicholson said.

It was not just his class on the oche people raved about, but his walk-on song. Fans at venues arounf the world would belt out the chorus of 'Mr Brightside' while Aspinall orchestrated them on stage, making him a huge fan-favourite. "Everybody loves Nathan's walk on but more than that, people love to watch him play darts. He had a great 2025. He won three times on the European Tour, including the very last one."

This year's Premier League was not an easy decision to make, with many standout players looking to place themselves among the world's elite. Aspinall was one of them, but in the PDC's eyes, it was not enough.

"He was competitive wherever he went across the whole season and I'm sure leaving him out was the most difficult decision the PDC had to make," Nicholson commented.

"They have to look at multiple things. How much money you won in the last year, how many tournaments you won and how entertaining you are. There are multiple people on that board, and it will come down to a vote of who wants who in."

It turns out Aspinall lost that vote, but according to the Aussie, this could be what he needs to motivate him into 2026. "It's not personal opinion, it's people trying to make the right choice, and it's never been more difficult. Someone has to lose out and it just so happens this time, Aspinall has to miss out, which should fire him up for 2026," Nicholson concluded.