Premier League Darts 2014 live on Sky Sports

Premier League Darts returns to Sky Sports for the 2014 season as the newly crowned PDC world champion Michael van Gerwen looks to cement his place at the top of the tree.

Liverpool’s Echo Arena hosts the opening round on Thursday, February 6, as the creme of the PDC darts circuit begins its 16-week-long roadshow across the UK and Ireland, concluding at London’s O2 Arena in May.

Dutchman van Gerwen will return to defend his Premier League title against a host of top names, including six-time champion Phil Taylor, 2011 winner Gary Anderson and former finalists Adrian Lewis and Simon Whitlock.

Peter Wright and Dave Chisnall will also be making their debuts in the event as they get the chance to sample the unique atmosphere of Premier League events for the first time.

The former earned his place after reaching the final of the Ladbrokes World Darts Championship, while Chisnall made the grade as a result of his rise into the world’s top five.

PDC world champion van Gerwen won the Premier League at his first attempt last year after overcoming arch-rival Phil Taylor 10-8 in a thrilling final having topped the table in the ‘regular season’ with some impressive consistency.

Taylor, who has won no fewer than 16 world titles, suffered a shock second-round exit at Alexandra Palace – falling 4-3 to Michael Smith – and will be desperate to re-establish himself as world number one by claiming a seventh Premier League Darts title.

Defeated world finalist Peter Wright, the colourful dresser who lives in Mendham in Suffolk, was fearless in forcing a showdown with van Gerwen in the PDC world final on New Year’s Day and is surely a live outsider in the Premier League format.

Alongside mainstays such as Lewis and van Barneveld, also joining the 10-strong party is St Helens’ Dave Chisnall, a BDO world championship runner-up in 2010.

Completing the 10-man line-up will be Englishman Wes Newton and Peter Wright’s fellow Scotsman Robert Thornton.

The tournament, staged by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), the world’s leading darts organisation, is played over 16 consecutive Thursdays from February 6 through to May 22 in arenas across the UK and Ireland.

Darts enthusiasts from Aberdeen to Exeter and from Belfast to Brighton are able to enjoy the exciting event at their local arenas.

The PDC has successfully bought darts into the mainstream over the past decad, with the organisation annually paying out over £7m of prize money to players and provides a pathway for amateurs to make it into the big league of professional darts.

PDC chairman Barry Hearn said of the 2014 line-up: “There is always going to be debate and discussion over which players are included but the Wildcards chosen both by ourselves and Sky Sports provide a great mix of quality, experience and personalities.”

“This will be the biggest ever Premier League Darts season, with 100,000 fans set to see the world’s best ten players over the next four months, and with live worldwide television coverage the tournament will take darts worldwide.”

The Betway Premier League Darts season begins on Thursday, February 6, when the opening league night is held at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.

The ten competing players face each other once over the opening nine weeks before the bottom two players are relegated following “Judgement Night” in Cardiff on April 3.

The remaining eight players then meet each other once more in the final six league nights, before the top four progress to the Play-Offs at The O2 in London on May 22 to compete for the £150,000 first prize.

Sky Sports will screen all 16 weeks of the 2014 Premier League Darts campaign exclusively live from February 6 to May 22.

Dave Clark will introduce the action alongside commentators and experts Rod Harrington, Wayne Mardle, Rod Studd, Stuart Pyke and Nigel Pearson.

The Sky Sports darts website will feature all the latest news, interviews and analysis from Sky experts, plus video highlights.

Fans can also interact with the on-air team via Twitter during each event – @SkySportsDarts.

THURSDAY 6th FEBRUARY

Premier League Darts

Week 1 – Echo Arena, Liverpool

Dave Chisnall v Robert Thornton

Peter Wright v Wes Newton

Raymond van Barneveld v Gary Anderson

Phil Taylor v Michael van Gerwen

Simon Whitlock v Adrian Lewis

19:00

THURSDAY 13th FEBRUARY

Premier League Darts

Week 2 – BIC, Bournemouth

Wes Newton v Raymond van Barneveld

Dave Chisnall v Peter Wright

Gary Anderson v Simon Whitlock

Adrian Lewis v Phil Taylor

Robert Thornton v Michael van Gerwen

19:00

THURSDAY 20th FEBRUARY

Premier League Darts

Week 3 – Odyssey Arena, Belfast

Robert Thornton v Gary Anderson

Dave Chisnall v Michael van Gerwen

Peter Wright v Phil Taylor

Wes Newton v Adrian Lewis

Raymond van Barneveld v Simon Whitlock

19:00

THURSDAY 27th FEBRUARY

Premier League Darts

Week 4 – SECC, Glasgow

Peter Wright v Adrian Lewis

Robert Thornton v Wes Newton

Simon Whitlock v Phil Taylor

Michael van Gerwen v Raymond van Barneveld

Dave Chisnall v Gary Anderson

19:00

THURSDAY 6th MARCH

Premier League Darts

Week 5 – BIC, Bournemouth

Peter Wright v Robert Thornton

Raymond van Barneveld v Dave Chisnall

Adrian Lewis v Michael van Gerwen

Phil Taylor v Gary Anderson

Wes Newton v Simon Whitlock

19:00

THURSDAY 13th MARCH

Premier League Darts

Week 6 – Capital FM Arena, Nottingham

Simon Whitlock v Peter Wright

Adrian Lewis v Gary Anderson

Michael van Gerwen v Wes Newton

Raymond van Barneveld v Robert Thornton

Phil Taylor v Dave Chisnall

19:00

THURSDAY 20th MARCH

Premier League Darts

Week 7 – First Direct Arena, Leeds

Dave Chisnall v Simon Whitlock

Robert Thornton v Adrian Lewis

Gary Anderson v Michael van Gerwen

Wes Newton v Phil Taylor

Peter Wright v Raymond van Barneveld

19:00

THURSDAY 27th MARCH

Premier League Darts

Week 8 – The O2, Dublin

Gary Anderson v Wes Newton

Simon Whitlock v Robert Thornton

Adrian Lewis v Dave Chisnall

Michael van Gerwen v Peter Wright

Phil Taylor v Raymond van Barneveld

19:00

THURSDAY 3rd APRIL

Premier League Darts

Week 9 – Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff

Adrian Lewis v Raymond van Barneveld

Phil Taylor v Robert Thornton

Wes Newton v Dave Chisnall

Gary Anderson v Peter Wright

Michael van Gerwen v Simon Whitlock

19:00

THURSDAY 10th APRIL

Premier League Darts

Week 10 – Motorpoint Arena, Sheffield

Following Week 9 – Bottom two players are eliminated

Fixtures for Weeks 10-15 to be confirmed