Darts World Cup
DFB professionals suddenly comment in “Ally Pally”
Updated 12/28/2025 – 7:21 a.mReading time: 1 min.
Ricardo Pietreczko fails in the darts duel with Andreas Harrysson and misses the round of 16. Two well-known Bundesliga footballers suddenly take over in the commentary box.
Ricardo Pietreczko had nothing to say after his disappointing exit from the Darts World Cup and disappeared from Alexandra Palace without comment. That couldn’t be said of the two German football professionals Tim Kleindienst (Borussia Mönchengladbach) and Maximilian Beier (Borussia Dortmund) – the duo not only attended the evening session in London, but were suddenly heard on the microphone on DAZN.
Kleindienst and Beier spoke about their passion for darts and their view of the football year 2026. Gladbach professional Kleindienst wore a sweater with the inscription “The best time of the year”. Below it was a dartboard with a Santa hat on it.
The evening was less moody for Pietreczko. The 2:4 against Sweden’s debutant Andreas Harrysson is a bitter setback for the 31-year-old.
“He’s not a pleasant draw, but I would actually say he’s one of the easier draws in the third round,” Pietreczko had previously said about the bearded Swede in an interview with Sport1. Harrysson defeated former European champion Ross Smith in round one.
Unlike in 2024 (defeat against eventual world champion Luke Humphries) and 2025 (round of 16 exit against England’s top player Nathan Aspinall), this time Pietreczko lost the role of favorite. By being eliminated in round three, the player with the Pokemon nickname “Pikachu” also missed out on making it into the top 32 in the world.