Darts is a competitive sport that is widely played in

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, with the first major tournament held in 1973, which has gained popularity in the country since the late 1990s.

History

Darts in the Netherlands is regulated by the ''Nederlandse Darts Bond'' (NDB or Dutch Darts Association) which was founded in 1976 and has local branches throughout the Netherlands. After this time several local leagues were founded.Over De Nederlandse Darts Bond
''Nederlandse Darts Bond'' To unify darts in the Netherlands, the ''Nederlandse Darts Federatie'' (NDF or Dutch Darts Federation) came into existence in July 1989 of which the local branches became members. The federation started out with 12 membership organisations (the original local branches) which together had roughly 7,000 members. In February 2005 the NDF was amalgamated into the association. The first Dutch darter to appear at a world darts championship was

Bert Vlaardingerbroek Bert Vlaardingerbroek (born 24 March 1960) is a Dutch former professional darts player who competed in events of the British Darts Organisation (BDO), Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), and World Darts Federation (WDF). Career Vlaardingerb ...

, who appeared at the 1988 Embassy World Darts Championship.Forgotten darters: Bert Vlaardingerbroek, the first ever Dutchman at a world darts championship
''Dartsnews.com'', 7 July 2023One hundred and eighty!
''de Volkskrant'', 4 January 2013Andere Tijden Sport - season 6 episode 1
/ref> When

Raymond van Barneveld Raymond van Barneveld (born 20 April 1967) is a Dutch professional darts player. Nicknamed Barney, although originally known as The Man, he is one of the most successful darts players in history. Van Barneveld is a five-time World Darts Champ ...

(who first played in the finals in 1995) won the 1998 Embassy World Darts Championship at

Lakeside Lakeside or Lake Side may refer to: Places Australia * Lakeside College, Pakenham, Victoria * Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City, Joondalup, Western Australia * Lakeside, near Reservoir, Victoria * Lakeside International Raceway, Pine Rivers, Quee ...

darts was fully put on the map in the Netherlands.Hoe Van Barneveld het darten groot maakte in Nederland
''RTL Nieuws'', 13 December 2019

Activities

As of 2023 the NDB has 25 membership organisations and the total membership is about 33,000. The association organises two national competitions, the ''LaCo'' (''Landelijke Competitie'' or National Competition) and the SuperLeague. There are cup and division competitions, youth competitions, a national ranking circuit and international competitions such as the

Dutch Open Dutch Open may refer to: *Dutch Open (tennis), an ATP tennis tournament from 1957 to 2008 *Dutch Open (golf), an annual golf tournament on the European Tour *Dutch Open (badminton) *Dutch Open (darts) The Dutch Open is amongst the longest running ...

and the association selects competitors to international events abroad. The NDB is a member of the

World Darts Federation The World Darts Federation (WDF) is a sport governing body and (along with the PDC) a tournament organiser for the game of darts. It was formed in 1974 by representatives of the original fourteen founding members. Membership is open to the natio ...

and is one of the largest leagues after the English darts association.

Tournaments held in the Netherlands

* Dutch Open (1973–currently)Registration for the Dutch Open Darts 2024 has opened
''Dartsnews.com'', 5 October 2023 *

Finder Darts Masters The Finder Darts Masters was a darts tournament held in Egmond aan Zee, Netherlands, sanctioned by the British Darts Organisation and the World Darts Federation, running intermittently under several different names from 1995 to 2018. The tourname ...

(1995–2018)Streep door Darts Masters in Hotel Zuiderduin
''Noordhollands Dagblad'', 9 July 2019 * World Darts Trophy (2002–2007) *

Masters of Darts The Masters of Darts has a unique place in darts history as it was the first televised tournament to be co-sanctioned by both the two rival organisations, the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) since the ...

(2005–2007)Keukenconcurrent Masters of Darts - Collated Results
''PDC Darts'', 2007 (archived)

List of Dutch darts world champions

* Raymond van Barneveld – Most successful Dutch darts player ever with five world championships, four at the BDO and one at the PDC * Michael van Gerwen – Current world number two with three world titles, all at the PDC *

Jelle Klaasen Jelle Klaasen (born 17 October 1984), nicknamed The Cobra, is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and World Darts Federation (WDF) events. In 2006, he became the youngest darts player to win the ...

– Youngest world champion ever with one BDO world title * Christian Kist – Third Dutchman to win at the BDO Christian slays Silverback 7-5 in thriller
''British Darts Organisation'', 15 January 2012 (archived)

Other Dutch darts players

* See: Dutch darts players

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline *
Nederlandse Darts Bond
' – Official website (in Dutch) Sport in the Netherlands 1973 establishments in the Netherlands