Premier League Darts returns for 2025 tonight. Night 1 will take place in Belfast but ahead of the games taking place, Nathan Aspinall has spoken out about his frustration with the ‘controversy’ surrounding his selection this year.
When the 2025 Premier League line-up was announced last month, there were a few surprise inclusions and exclusions.
Peter Wright and Michael Smith were both dropped from the line-up and replaced by Chris Dobey and Stephen Bunting.
Nathan Aspinall and Gerwyn Price had a relatively poor 2024 campaign by their usual high standards but were still selected by the PDC.
Matt Porter, the PDC Chief Executive justified their inclusion based on reputation and a proven ability to perform in the Premier League.
Mike De Decker arguably started a big controversy on the back of this.
The 2024 World Grand Prix winner was snubbed for selection and labeled the PDC as ‘scandalous’ for the decision and claimed Nathan Aspinall was “only included for his walk-on”.
See more – Mike De Decker calls out PDC and fellow players following Premier League snub
Aspinall would initially downplay this telling talkSPORT he was “disappointed he said that” but didn’t fire back with any criticism.
In the lead up to Night 1 starting, Aspinall has been frequently asked about his inclusion by the media and has finally hit back suggesting the PDC make a rule change moving forward.
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Nathan Aspinall ‘Fed Up’ with Controversy Surrounding his Premier League Inclusion
Nathan Aspinall was asked about the controversy surrounding his inclusion in the 2025 Premier League as the very first question when speaking with talkSPORT Darts yesterday.
Aspinal responded:
“Honestly, I’m fed up talking about it.
“At the start, I was putting my argument across why I was included in it, but now I don’t care.
“At the end of the day, the only opinion that mattered was Matt Porter and the PDC. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but it was just every single day. To the point that I’ve come off social media because of it.
“For my own dignity, I’ve just come off it.”
Not even 24hrs after making this comment, Aspinall was then present at the Premier League media day and would once again be asked about his inclusion.
This time, Aspinall seemed genuinely tired of these responses and has called on the PDC to make a rule change so that this doesn’t happen again in the future.
“It’s not a ranking event, that’s what everyone needs to remember. It’s basically a big, massive exhibition for 16 weeks.
“The sooner people realise that… It’s the players that people want to see.
“In my opinion, God’s honest truth as I said this last year, If it was down to me I’d make it the top 8 in the world.
“To save all the stuff that I’ve been through, the disappointment from you know, Mike De Decker – who’s World number 24.
“To save all that is he in, is he not? Top 8, done.”
Nathan Aspinall has suggested the PDC change the criteria for Premier League after debate around picks
— Darts Now (@DartsNow_) February 5, 2025
"If it was down to me, I'd make the Premier League the top eight in the world to save all the stuff I've been through" pic.twitter.com/azGDfChP1I
Controversy aside, Aspinall immediately faces a challenging opening tie on the opening night as he faces World number 1 and new Winmau World Master champion, Luke Humprhies.
If the pressure surrounding his selection wasn’t enough, the opening tie has certainly not done The Asp any favours…
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