Five-time winner Michael van Gerwen and new world No. 1 Gerwyn Price to head 2021 Premier League darts, as Dimitri van den Bergh and Jose de Sousa make their debut – the season is not expected starting before Easter due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Le Ali Stafford
Last updated: 03/01/21 10:40 pm
2:32
PDC CEO Matt Porter explains why the start of the 2021 Premier League season will be delayed
PDC CEO Matt Porter explains why the start of the 2021 Premier League season will be delayed
Dimitri van den Bergh and Jose de Sousa will both make their first Unibet Premier League Darts tours in 2021, which will be delayed due to coronavirus pandemic.
The new campaign was due to start at Motorpoint Arena Cardiff on February 4 but was pushed back due to high Covid-19 restrictions, with the first nine events postponed to a later date.
PDC officials are hopeful that the league season can begin around Easter – in line with UK government guidelines – and are still reviewing the options available to them, with the competition returning to form 10-player this year.
Glen Durrant defeated Nathan Aspinall 11-8 in the 2020 final
New world and world 1 champions Gerwyn Price, Michael van Gerwen, Peter Wright, Gary Anderson, Rob Cross, Glen Durrant and Nathan Aspinall will all also feature, and the final player will be named after The Masters later on the month.
“We feel Premier League darts is an event that deserves full range as well as all events, but it thrives with the energy and feel they create,” said High School. PDC officer Matt Porter Sky Sports.
“We are looking to delay the start of Premier League darts, perhaps around Easter time, so we can hopefully start to get a crowd back on the fields.
“Of course we’re not just in the four countries of the UK, but the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands and Germany as well, so that’s seven different sets of rules. By buying a month or two more for ourselves and we hope to look forward to welcoming fans back through the doors. “
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The bottom two players after Judgment Night after nine games will be eliminated from the event, with another seven league nights then taking place ahead of the ending Play-Offs.
World Matchplay Winner Van den Bergh gets his first full season, having emerged as a one-man “opponent” during the 2019 campaign, while competing in the Grand Slam of Darts De Sousa he will have the appearance of a Premier League maiden.
Durrant he will return as a defensive champion after ending his debating season with an overbearing victory Aspinall, and is a five-time Premier League champion Van Gerwen and a two-time winner Anderson We aim to get the trophy back in 2021.
0:50 A look back at the final between Gary Anderson and Gerwyn Price at the World Darts Championships
The ancient heroes of the world Wright and Cross, Premier League runners in 2017 and 2019 respectively, the duo will reappear, with Price engaged for the fourth year in a row looking to improve on back finishes in fifth place.
All previous events will be held in February and March, along with the originally planned Judgment Night in Brighton on 1 April, with details of rescheduled dates to be confirmed later.
Watch full coverage every night of the Premier League ahead Sky Sports, and stay with us throughout the year as we bring you news, interviews and more from the darting world.