Darts sensation Gian van Veen has discussed his potential rivalry with world champion Luke Littler that many believe could be the next great darting era
Darts sensation Gian van Veen said he ‘would be crying in bed’ if he compared himself to Luke Littler.
Van Veen has been an emerging force on the PDC Pro Tour for a couple of years now and he landed his first major title in the European Championship last month. ‘The Giant’ beat Luke Humphries in a deciding leg victory in Germany to firmly announce his arrival at the top table.
At just 23, Van Veen has been tipped as the Netherlands’ next big star, following in the footsteps of Raymond van Barneveld and Michael van Gerwen. Given his age and huge potential, the idea of Van Veen and Littler leading the next era of darting rivalry has been excitedly spoken about.
While world No.1 Luke Humphries will be in the conversation for years to come at just 30, and the next generation of stars like Josh Rock are already firmly on the map, a Littler-Van Veen era has been compared to the next Taylor-Van Barneveld.
However, the Dutchman is not thinking about Littler, but instead insists he is focusing on himself as he looks to soon pass Van Gerwen and become the top-ranked Dutch player.
He said: “Yeah, for sure. I think it’s a possibility [becoming Dutch number one], especially if I keep my numbers up like they have been in 2025. But Michael is always Michael.
“You’ve seen it last year when he wasn’t in good form and then in the World Championships he came and reached the final. If he does that again then I won’t be near him next year.”
When asked about future instalments against Littler, with ‘The Nuke’ beating him in the World Youth Championship final in 2023 in their first breakout on the big stage, Van Veen had nothing but respect for the world champion.
“Of course, it’s nice to be put in the same sentence as someone like Luke Littler, but to see what he’s done in the past couple past two years, it is phenomenal,” he continued.
“I don’t want to compare myself to him [Littler] because then I would be crying in bed the whole week.
“He’s doing it tournament in, tournament out, all those pressure moments, he’s always up for the task and that’s why he’s number two in the world now but looking likely to be the world number one soon.”
Van Veen will be looking to continue his momentum in Wolverhampton for the Grand Slam of Darts next week.
The Dutchman reached the quarter-finals last year and has been drawn in a group alongside Rock, Wessel Nijman and Lisa Ashton.