RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD says the path to darts’ first £1million world champion began 20 years ago – with a Barry Hearn promise.
But though pioneer Barney played a key role in the sport’s financial evolution over the past two decades, he reckons that means nothing when he has to buy groceries in the supermarket.
The Dutch icon won four world titles on the BDO circuit at Lakeside and was wooed over to the PDC in 2006.
It was during conversations with Hearn, the then oche supremo, that he was told about an ambitious money plan, which has now come to fruition.
Van Barneveld, 58, said: “Barry always told me in the first negotiations to get me from the BDO to the PDC.
“I admire the man’s future vision. He said one day a darts player will earn a million pounds. And he kept his promise.
“We all did our part. Phil Taylor, me, Michael van Gerwen, Luke Littler and Luke Humphries at the moment, Gerwyn Price.
“But now it’s going to be insane. You know, a million pounds.
“I think many other sportsmen in different sports are really like: Wow!
“Some people may say, if I win this, I will stop. But no-one will do that because then you get invited into the Premier League. You get invited to the other World Series events.
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“So more money is there for grabs.”
Van Barneveld won his one and only world title on the PDC ranks when he beat Phil Taylor in the 2007 World final in a sudden-death leg shootout.
It is the sport’s greatest final, the closest ever at the highest level, and he remains a huge crowd favourite.
For his troubles, he earned £100,000 in prize money – the figure is now ten times more for the 2026 recipient of the Sid Waddell Trophy on January 3, 2026.
The former postman said: “You have to progress. You can’t stand still. The money wasn’t there at the time.
“I earned £100,000. You have to give something to your management.
“You’re paying a lot of travel costs and stuff. Then we have the tax man.
“We all know the guy who wins a million, half of that goes to the tax man.
“Of course, I’m proud that we’re getting there and we all have the ability to earn that million.
“I always said I made the path smoother for all the younger players. I’m still on that same road. All the rest are coming behind me.
“Yeah, it’s good. But if I’m in the supermarket, and I need to pay 100 euros, I could say: ‘Oh, excuse me, I’m the one who put darts on the map…’
“They say: ‘Yeah, I was watching, too, but 100 euros, sir.’
“This is the funny way of saying you still need to make money. You can’t rely on things that happened in the past. That money is all gone.
“So you have to keep earning money to have a nice living situation, to pay your bills or your rent or your mortgage.”
