{"id":55096,"date":"2025-12-17T20:51:47","date_gmt":"2025-12-18T01:51:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/sport\/raymond-van-barneveld-has-father-time-caught-up-with-five-time-world-champion-as-question-marks-over-future-arise-darts-news\/17\/12\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T20:51:55","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T01:51:55","slug":"raymond-van-barneveld-has-father-time-caught-up-with-five-time-world-champion-as-question-marks-over-future-arise-darts-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/sport\/raymond-van-barneveld-has-father-time-caught-up-with-five-time-world-champion-as-question-marks-over-future-arise-darts-news\/17\/12\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Raymond van Barneveld: Has ‘Father Time’ caught up with five-time world champion as question marks over future arise | Darts News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Raymond van Barneveld has admitted he will ask himself “what’s next?” after he lost his first match at the World Darts Championship for a second year running.<\/p>\n

Van Barneveld was thrashed 3-0 by Switzerland’s Stefan Bellmont on Wednesday, winning just two legs, and is set to drop significantly down from his current ranking of 35th following the tournament.<\/p>\n

The 58-year-old has already retired once from darts at the start of 2020 but returned after a year out and got back into the top 32. However, he has struggled to perform on the big stage which irks the five-time world champion.<\/p>\n

“It has been a very poor year for me. I need to regroup myself,” he told Dutch TV channel Viaplay<\/em>.<\/p>\n

“It’s very difficult to answer what’s next. On the practice board I’m a five-time world champion, maybe even ten-time.<\/p>\n

“But during the matches it just is not going my way. And why not? I don’t know. I can’t answer that, really.”<\/p>\n

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Raymond van Barneveld makes his entrance to the 2026 World Darts Championship<\/span>
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Van Barneveld has won two Players Championship events since his comeback in 2021 but, aside from a semi-final appearance at the 2022 Grand Slam of Darts, has rarely shown his best form at the major televised events.<\/p>\n

He added: “Of course, this hurts. It’s the second time in a row this happens to me. I wonder by myself how to go on.<\/p>\n

“I wonder what to do because suffering every week from all the defeats is not what I want. That’s obvious.<\/p>\n

“He doesn’t even have a tour card and to only win two legs, that says it all. I have got homework to do and have to find out what to do next. But, this one hurts, that’s obvious.”<\/p>\n

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Stefan Bellmont beats Raymond van Barneveld in the first round of the World Darts Championship<\/span>
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Durrant: Father Time catching up with Van Barneveld<\/h3>\n

Van Barneveld, who has been a professional darts player since 1984, has not reached the quarter-finals at the World Championship since 2018.<\/p>\n

Former Premier League Darts champion and Sky Sports Darts<\/em>‘ Glen Durrant says “it’s difficult to have such longevity” but expects Van Barneveld to carry in playing in 2026.<\/p>\n

“It’s not easy to walk away. Barney could be practicing great. I’ve seen him at exhibitions when he looked really happy and he was marvellous,” said Durrant.<\/p>\n

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Take a look back at when Raymond van Barneveld produced an unbelievable nine-darter against Brendan Dolan at the World Darts Championship in 2010<\/span>
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“You always have that hope and expectation. Father Time catches up with you. Your eyesight goes, sometimes you feel aches and pains.<\/p>\n

“He will have questions to ask himself. He will have the answers. He retired once and came back, won tournaments, so he has a big decision to make.<\/p>\n

“I can’t see him walking away because darts has never been in such a good place.”<\/p>\n

Who will win the Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live all the way through until Saturday January 3 on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel. <\/strong>Stream darts and more top sport with NOW<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Raymond van Barneveld has admitted he will ask himself “what’s next?” after he lost his first match at the World Darts Championship