Darts World Cup
Defeat against outsiders: world champion sensationally out
Updated 12/18/2025 – 9:56 a.mReading time: 1 min.
Raymond van Barneveld loses to Stefan Bellmont in the first round of the World Darts Championship. The Swiss is making sports history.
Darts icon Raymond van Barneveld failed badly at the World Championships in London. The five-time world champion from the Netherlands clearly lost 3-0 to Swiss outsider Stefan Bellmont in the first round at Alexandra Palace and only won two legs. Bellmont was the first Swiss darts player in history to make it into the second round at the highlight of the year.
A disappointing year ends for van Barneveld. What happens next is still unclear. The 58-year-old announced his retirement after the 2020 World Cup, but returned a year later for financial reasons. Despite his early elimination, he will still receive prize money of around 17,000 euros for his participation.