Aspinall advocates Ryder Cup-style tournament: 'Could sell out a 30,000 stadium comfortably'

Nathan Aspinall has proposed expanding the darts calendar with another tournament. According to the two-time major winner, a Ryder Cup-like tournament between the United Kingdom and the rest of the world would not only be a spectacular addition for the public, but would also help to improve cooperation between players such as Luke Littler and Luke Humphries.

The call for change comes after the English duo were eliminated surprisingly early at the World Cup of Darts, where as top favorites they went down in their first match against Germany. For Aspinall, the current format falls short when it comes to forging close-knit teams.

“One change I would make [to the circuit] is having a Ryder Cup-style tournament. You could do the UK against the rest of the world. You’ve got all the Dutch players, all the Germans, the likes of Damon Heta and people like that," said Aspinall.

“You could do triples, pairs, and singles matches, it would be mega for players and fans.

Aspinall is convinced that such an event could effortlessly fill large venues in Europe. “If you did it somewhere like in the centre of Germany, and change every year, you could probably sell a 30,000-seater stadium comfortably, and it would create some atmosphere.”

His proposal did not come out of the blue. The darter from Stockport watched with sorrow as world champion Luke Littler and world number two Luke Humphries failed to get into their game at the World Cup. Despite their individual class, the chemistry was lacking.

“I think you’ve seen from the World Cup that you have to gel as a team. Luke and Luke, even though they’re mates, they didn’t gel at the World Cup, which is why they didn’t get far.

He points to successful pairs like Josh Rock & Daryl Gurney and the Welsh duo Gerwyn Price & Jonny Clayton, who he says made it to the final precisely because of their mutual bond. “You saw with Josh and Daryl, and Gezzy and Jonny, they clearly did gel, and that’s why they made the finals.

“The only issue is that there is that much going on in darts at the moment, I think the PDC is going to leave it as it is for now. You never know, in the future it might be something that they look into.”