Preview Premier League Darts Night 11 at Rotterdam Ahoy: Littler battles both Price and hostile Dutch crowd, Van Gerwen and Van Veen return home

On Thursday evening, 16/04, the moment finally arrives: the Premier League Darts touches down in the Netherlands. Rotterdam Ahoy is the stage this week for Night 11 of the competition, and both Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen will hope to clinch the nightly title on home soil.

The Premier League first arrived in the Dutch port city in 2016. Back then, both Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld played at Ahoy. Mighty Mike defeated Phil Taylor 7-5 in that first edition. Van Barneveld drew 6-6 with Peter Wright.

In 2018, the night in Exeter was cancelled due to heavy snowfall, which suddenly handed Rotterdam two consecutive nights on Wednesday and Thursday. That week produced one of the most memorable matches in Rotterdam’s history: Raymond van Barneveld and Michael van Gerwen met in front of a raucous home crowd, with Barney ultimately beating his compatriot 7-5 in a rocking Ahoy. Those two Dutch nights proved such a hit that they were repeated a year later, and once again Van Barneveld and Van Gerwen faced off on the second night. This time MVG was far too strong for the Hague native, winning 7-1.

Since the new format, we have seen three different nightly winners in Rotterdam. Van Gerwen secured the nightly title in 2022 by edging Jonny Clayton 6-5 in a gripping final. A year later, Mighty Mike was eliminated in the opening round by the eventual winner that night, Nathan Aspinall. In 2024, Van Gerwen again failed to get past his opener. He lost to Luke Humphries, and once more it was Aspinall who won the night. Last year there was again no Dutchman in the final. The Dutchman fell at the first hurdle once more, and Chris Dobey beat Stephen Bunting 6-2 in the final.

The night kicks off with a mouthwatering clash. Current world champion Luke Littler faces Gerwyn Price. There has been plenty of chatter online that Littler can expect a very hostile reception in Rotterdam after his run-in with Gian van Veen during the Manchester week. Many Dutch fans naturally side with Van Veen, so The Nuke is expected to face a chorus of boos at Ahoy. He seemed affected by it in Brighton last week too, where a section of the English crowd also booed him. He then posted an 83.94 average, the lowest TV average of his PDC career. It remains to be seen how Littler copes with a cauldron-like Ahoy. The impact on his play-off position will likely be limited, however, as he looks fairly secure with 21 points and second place.

Price produced a phenomenal night in Manchester with three ton-plus averages, good for his second nightly title of the campaign. Many expected him to carry that form into last week, but he surprisingly lost his opener to Josh Rock. Still, with 19 points and third place, Price is well on course to reach Finals Night at the end of May. A strong result in Rotterdam would only strengthen that position.]

Price and Littler have already met four times in this Premier League, and based on those results, The Nuke is the clear favorite. The Welshman has yet to beat Littler once in this year’s competition.

Next up is the first Dutchman of the evening. Gian van Veen takes on Luke Humphries. On paper Humphries is the favorite, but the Englishman hasn’t found his groove in this Premier League, and the Dutch crowd could tilt things toward The Giant. Van Veen has been boom-or-bust so far. He either reaches the final (which he has lost each time) or exits in the opener. As a result, he currently sits fifth, just one spot outside the play-offs but four points behind fourth-placed Van Gerwen. A nightly title on home soil would be hugely valuable with Finals Night in mind.

Humphries has been surprisingly underwhelming so far. The world No. 2 is seventh with 11 points and has yet to win a night. He has reached just one final in the first 10 weeks. Add in the head-to-head since 2025, when Van Veen broke through, and the Dutchman again looks like the favorite. Cool Hand Luke has beaten Van Veen only twice in nine meetings since January 2025. Their sole Premier League encounter earlier this year was, however, one of those two wins.

Next up is Michael van Gerwen, who faces far from the easiest opponent in Jonny Clayton in Rotterdam. It’s a repeat of last week’s final, when the Welshman edged it 6-5 against “Mighty Mike.” For Van Gerwen, that marked his fourth final of this campaign. However, he has won only one of those four finals, which came on the opening night in Newcastle. “MVG” knows what it takes to succeed in Rotterdam and will throw everything at claiming victory tonight.

On paper though, Clayton is probably the toughest opponent he could have drawn. “The Ferret” is in blistering form in this Premier League and sits proudly atop the table with 24 points. He has also already won three nights. The Welshman looks all but certain of the Play-Offs, yet he will still want to protect that top spot. And for him, nothing would feel better than beating Van Gerwen in front of his own Dutch crowd. He will be fired up to win.

Looking at their previous meetings, it would be no surprise in this Premier League if Clayton were to defeat Van Gerwen again. They have faced each other twice so far, and on both occasions “The Ferret” came out on top.

Finally, we get a showdown between Stephen Bunting and Josh Rock. There is still plenty to play for as far as Bunting is concerned. “The Bullet” sits sixth on 11 points and, with a nightly win, would still have a shot at the top four. He will, however, need to put together several strong results in the coming weeks.

For Rock, this Premier League looks like a lost cause, and he can only try to collect as many points as possible while working on his form. Unless he suddenly wins three nights in a row, his chances of reaching Finals Night are slim. “Rocky” has, however, won his opening match in each of the past three weeks, suggesting the pressure has started to lift and he is playing with more freedom.

Earlier this Premier League, Bunting swept past Rock 6-1. And looking at their overall head-to-head, the Englishman also appears the favorite. He has beaten “Rocky” six times in eight meetings.