It’s not often you find a 58-year-old Dutch 'Old Master' and an 18-year-old English prodigy sharing the same big stage, but welcome to modern darts – where Raymond van Barneveld will attempt to slow down the sport’s unstoppable teenager, Luke Littler, at the Machineseeker European Championship in Dortmund.
The clash isn’t just about two players; it’s about eras colliding. One has been playing darts since mullets were fashionable the first time around, while the other was still choosing his GCSE options when he won the World Youth title.
Littler, who has spent 2024 collecting trophies like loyalty points, has already lifted the UK Open, World Matchplay and World Grand Prix – all before most 18-year-olds master parallel parking. A win this weekend would not only earn him the European Championship title but also bump Luke Humphries off the top of the world rankings. No pressure then.
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Van Barneveld, meanwhile, is hardly new to facing greatness. He’s gone toe-to-toe with Phil Taylor, traded fire with Michael van Gerwen, and now finds himself preparing to face a teenager who probably had to Google who John Lowe was.
Still, the Dutch master isn’t one for nerves. “I have big respect for Luke. When he has that drive to win something, then usually he wins it,” conceded Van Barneveld. “When you watch him sometimes it’s like he has a fourth dart! I’ve seen a lot in my life, playing against the likes of Phil [Taylor] and Michael [van Gerwen], but this young man is out of this world.”
For context, when Raymond says “out of this world,” he doesn’t mean “good for his age.” He means “makes-alien-contact-level” good. Littler’s ability to rattle off a 12-darter while chewing gum and checking his phone for Uber Eats updates is the sort of thing that makes veterans question their career choices.
But don’t expect Barney to roll over. “When he goes to his top level, then nobody can stop him, but when people say you’ve got nothing to lose playing against Luke, I don’t agree with that,” he said. “Of course you have everything to lose, because you want to make progress, you want to win. That’s why you play darts. Luke is the man to beat, but I’m playing well, I’m focused, and I’m not scared of him. I just play the board.”
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It’s classic Barney – part respect, part defiance, all delivered with that trademark calmness of a man who’s seen every type of dart drama imaginable. He’s earned his spot in Dortmund the hard way, sneaking into the 32-player field after a strong finish to his European Tour campaign. A quarter-final at the Swiss Darts Trophy and a 107.97 demolition of Dave Chisnall in Hungary reminded everyone that the old gunslinger still has bullets in the barrel.
“I feel really confident with the current set-up, so hopefully in the next few months I can get some good results,” he added. “It’s important that I stick to the same set-up now. I’ve gone back to shorter shafts and in my head, I’m making more progress. I’m playing well, but against the likes of Gerwyn Price, Jonny Clayton and Gary Anderson, who I have played recently, you need to be quality to beat these guys.”
That confidence might be needed in truckloads. Littler has beaten Barney in two of their three meetings – both on TV – though the Dutchman did get one back on the ProTour last year, winning 6-2. The averages tell their own story too: van Barneveld has never dipped below 99 against Littler, which is about the level you need just to make him blink.
“If I can beat the World Champion and the current world number two, that would be a massive result of course,” said the 58-year-old. “I’m not in a position to look too far ahead. I’m doing okay, but it’s not like the old Ray anymore. I have to be realistic. In the big majors over the last two years it’s not happened for me, but who is to say what will happen in the future?”
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So here we are: the darting grandmaster versus the teenage phenomenon. One man chasing another glorious chapter, the other writing his story in capital letters.
It’s wisdom versus wonder. Experience versus energy. And depending on which version of Barney turns up – the 2007 world-beater or the 2023 ProTour warrior – this could be one of those nights that reminds us why darts is the greatest soap opera on Earth.
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