Here’s everything you need to know about Thursday’s Premier League event
PROFESSIONAL darts returns to Cardiff this week, with hometown hero Gerwyn Price set to grace the stage at a sold-out Utilita Arena.
Welsh fans will have their eyes on Price, The Iceman, who is riding high after beating darting superstar Luke Littler in the final of last week’s tournament.
The Markham-born star is third in the league table, four points behind Littler, the current Premier League champion, and Luke Humphries, the world No 1 and last season’s runner-up.
The Iceman will be hoping to improve on his last performance in Cardiff, where he lost 6-2 to a dominant Michael Smith.
The event will also see superstars Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen compete, alongside Rob Cross, Nathan Aspinall, Chris Dobey, and viral sensation Stephen Bunting, who has been sending crowds into a frenzy with his walk-on and rendition of David Guetta’s Titanium.
The Premier League: What you need to know
The BetMGM Premier League, a weekly tournament held by the Professional Darts Corporation, features eight of the world’s best darts players competing against each other for a place in the play-off final in London.
The tournament is held in a different city every week, and March 20 will see the tournament return to Cardiff’s Utilita Arena for the seventh week of the league.
The format sees all eight players compete in a bracket, with the winners of the first four matches moving onto a semi-final, before the final two play each other in the last match of the night.
Players earn two points for a quarter-final win, three for a semi-final win, and five for winning the final.
At the end of the season, the four players with the most points head to the O2 in London for the final, with the winner being crowned Premier League champion.
Here are the fixtures for Thursday’s event:
- Chris Dobey v Stephen Bunting
- Luke Humphries v Michael van Gerwen
- Luke Littler v Nathan Aspinall
- Gerwyn Price v Rob Cross
Who’s playing?
The Premier League is made up of the top four players in the PDC Order of Merit, alongside four wildcard players.
Two changes have been made to the line-up this season, with World Championship semi-finalists Chris Dobey and Stephen Bunting replacing the out of form Michael Smith and Peter Wright.
Luke Littler
Luke Littler is the man of the hour. The defending Premier League and World Champion is having a fantastic season, topping the table and building on his dominant performance in the 2025 World Championship.
The Nuke has a three-dart average of 104, the best in the league, and has made the final in four of the first six nights. The 18-year-old sensation will play Nathan Aspinall, who has the lowest three-dart average in the league with 94.
Littler will be hoping to make another run to the final and put some breathing room between himself and Humphries at the top of table.
Luke Humphries
It’s been a stop-start season for Cool Hand Luke. After finishing as runner-up last year, the world No 1 got off to a bright start this season, winning two of the first four nights.
Since then, he’s seemed to stall, exiting in the first round of the past two nights. He currently sits second in the table, but with Gerwyn Price on the up and Michael van Gerwen not far behind, Humphries will be feeling the heat in Cardiff.
Gerwyn Price
It’s a homecoming for Gerwyn Price, as he returns to Cardiff after a promising start to his Premier League season. The Iceman won last week’s final, beating Luke Littler 6-3 and charging up the table into third.
After losing in the final last time the Premier League visited Cardiff, the Iceman will be looking for redemption, and to continue a run of form that has put him on track for a play-off place.
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen has had a frustrating start to the season. After a low-key 2024 which ended in a 7-3 drubbing in the World Championship final, so far 2025 hasn’t been any kinder.
Despite being fourth in the table, it’s been a poor season for MvG, failing to reach the final on any of the first six nights and losing more matches than he’s won.
Van Gerwen will face off against Luke Humphries, and he will no doubt look to capitalise on Cool Hand’s poor run of form and strengthen his position in the league table.
Rob Cross
It’s been an uneventful season so far for Rob Cross. The world number four has flown under the radar, averaging an impressive 99 but failing to make the final in any of the first six nights.
His match against Gerwyn Price could prove crucial, as Voltage can close the gap on the top four and put himself back in the mix for a play-off spot.
Nathan Aspinall
After a poor 2024 which saw him drop down the PDC Order of Merit, Nathan Aspinall is on the rise again.
Tied fifth with Rob Cross and just outside the play-off places, Aspinall is proving his doubters wrong, and showing the darting world that he still has something to offer at the highest level.
He will face close friend Luke Littler in a tie that pits the highest average of the tournament against the lowest, with Aspinall only averaging 94.
Fans of The Asp will be hoping for an upset, but experts will heavily favour Littler and his incredible run of form.
Chris Dobey
It’s been a tough campaign so far for Chris Dobey. After reaching the final on night one of the season, losing out to Luke Humphries, the Geordie hasn’t won a match since, going out in the first round five nights in a row.
Dobey will face off against a struggling Stephen Bunting in the opening match of the night. He’ll be anxious to turn his fortunes around and keep one eye on the play-off places as the season nears the halfway mark.
Stephen Bunting
It’s all going wrong for the Bullet. After a 2024 campaign which saw the St Helens star win the Masters and reach the semi-finals of the World Championship, Bunting has got off to a sluggish start in 2025.
The crowd favourite is yet to win a match in the Premier League this season, leaving him firmly rooted to the bottom of the table. He will be hoping for a change in fortunes, before his Premier League campaign is truly dead in the water.
- The BetMGM Premier League starts at 6pm on Thursday, March 20. You can watch live coverage of the night’s action on Sky Sports Main Event.
