Michael van Gerwen urges darts chiefs to ditch iconic Ally Pally and take PDC World Championships to ‘great’ venue

MICHAEL VAN GERWEN has urged the PDC to move the World Championship away from Alexandra Palace to a “great” venue in Saudi Arabia.

Michael van Gerwen is open to the World Championship moving away from Ally PallyGetty

Ally Pally has played host to the PDC World Championship since 2008PA

Former PDC boss Barry Hearn, who has passed the role of chairman onto son Eddie, has already spoken about wanting to move darts into Saudi Arabia.

And three-time world champion Van Gerwen, 35, is open to the idea of darts’ biggest tournament leaving Ally Pally for the Middle East.

Speaking to The Mail, he said: “[It] will be great, I think.

“They wanna make sports big in that country. You saw the big boxing marches there, the football there…

“For me, I don’t mind where I play. I will be competing, and that’s how it is.”

Ally Pally has played host to the World Championship since 2008 when it moved from The Circus Tavern in Essex.

But darts is becoming a more global sport, partly due to the rise of sensation Luke Littler, 17, who recently became Premier League champion.

This weekend, the best players in the world are competing in the US Darts Masters in New York – which began in 2017.

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And Van Gerwen has heaped praise on the PDC for increasing interest around the world.

He added: “I’ve been in the PDC for 18 years – it’s quite a long time. I’ve been everywhere.

“I’ve been to all the top places, the nice places, the best places when you didn’t have a lot of money, when you had to book not the best hotels.

“Now we’re in New York. That’s how quick darts can grow.

“And I think the people behind [the scenes], the PDC, and Matchroom [owned by the Hearns] did a phenomenal job.”

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