VAN DEN BERGH, BARNEY AND WILLIAMS TIPPED TO MISS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
22/06/2026 By Aaron Nijjar
DIMITRI VAN DEN BERGH, Raymond van Barneveled and Scott Williams have all been sensationally tipped to miss the World Championship.
Two-time major winner Van den Bergh has endured a miserable season so far, failing to reach a single ProTour quarter-final and hasn’t tasted victory at a major event since the UK Open last year.
The Dreammaker suffered a dramatic decline in form despite being among the sport’s elite just two years ago.
Van den Bergh currently sits 56th in the ProTour Order of Merit and needs to be sat inside the top 40 to secure qualification for Ally Pally.
Former pro Vincent van der Voort believes Van den Bergh is a shadow of the player he once was.
He said on the Darts Draait Door Podcast: “Van den Bergh is of course also a semi-finalist.
“Scott Williams is a semi-finalist. All not that long ago. And yes, they’re really struggling at the moment.
“The chance that Dimitri is going to make it, to be honest, isn’t very big.
“We saw it at the World Cup. There’s definitely still something there. Only the confidence is very fragile.
“So it can collapse again at any moment. It can also be that at any moment you think: maybe it’s turning the right way again.
“Over the years it’s become clear that he just finds ProTours very difficult. And that’s exactly where it has to happen now.
“For him you have to fear even more, of course.”
Five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld hasn’t fared much better after failing to win a match on the Euro Tour this season.
The Dutchman hit a new low in his clash against Alan Soutar at the Austrian Darts Open last month, averaging just 77.79 and losing 6-2 in Graz.
Van Barneveld has since taken a short break from the sport, but compatriot Vincent van der Voort is not convinced it will spark a resurgence.
He added: “Raymond is taking a bit of rest now. I don’t know if he played the last two tournaments.
“With him you’re never quite sure. But something needs to happen, of course.
“You’ve already had more than twenty ProTours. There are only about ten, twelve to go. A few more Euro Tours. Everything has to happen in those.
“In the autumn there aren’t that many tournaments left where you can do it.
“There are many TV tournaments, but you’re not seeded for those. So where are you going to do it?”
Scott Williams reached the semi-finals of the World Championship in 2024, famously defeating Michael van Gerwen in the quarter-finals on his way to the last four.
But Shaggy has struggled to build on that breakthrough run, battling dartitis and suffering a string of early exits on the PDC circuit.
Van der Voort continued: “He’s had a bit of dartitis. Maybe still does.
“You often see that when people do more with their dart, turning it or making odd movements, that’s when you get it. But he had such a lovely throw.
“I thought he was at his best that year he didn’t have a Tour Card. He even won a ProTour then. He was really that good.
“Back then he could play everything. That seemed to suit him better than this.
“I find him better on stage than on the floor.
“I think all three won’t make the Worlds. Not via the rankings, anyway.”
Image by Taylor Lanning.
