This year’s line-up was described as very difficult to pick, with some high-profile names underperforming throughout the year and tournament chiefs forced to weigh up and balance the entertainment factor along with those who have performed well.
Porter explained to Sky Sports News that “big stage presence” was a determining factor when picking the line-up: “Price, Dobey and Aspinall. There are players above them in the rankings that haven’t been selected. But we’ve looked at it in terms of big stage presence. We’ve looked at it in terms of popularity in the way that they can get a 10,000 crowd every week going.
“We want people on the edge of their seats and up enjoying the darts. That’s not to say other players can’t do that. You have to make a decision as to what you feel is right at the time.
“The board has selected players that we feel will deliver that level of entertainment and that level of darting excellence every week. People will disagree with us and that’s the nature of it. It’s part and parcel of sport.
“Every decision will be analysed, we may get decisions wrong, we may get decisions right. But ultimately the proof will be in the pudding in the numbers every week.”
Mike De Decker’s omission will feel the harshest, having won the World Grand Prix in 2024. He became the first player in the history of the Premier League to win a major televised Sky Sports event and not be selected for the competition.
Porter detailed why, claiming that despite the Dutchman’s big win he wasn’t “ready” to spend 16 weeks competing with the biggest names in darts.
“Mike [De Decker] is an outstanding talent and is someone that undoubtedly we will see in Premier League Darts in the future,” Porter said. “We didn’t feel he was quite ready. There’s a lot of tournaments throughout the year and winning one.
“We’ve seen players in the past I don’t want to embarass [them] by naming them but players like Danny Noppert, Ross Smith and Andrew Gilding that have won TV tournaments.
“But you have to show that you can compete in the latter stages of TV tournaments on a regular basis. Doing it once is fantastic and is something that you will always have but to really be part of the elite, you have to be doing it on a regular basis over multiple years.”
