Raymond van Barneveld: Five-time world champion to come out of retirement

Raymond van Barneveld is one of only three players to win five world titles

Five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld has announced plans to come out of retirement and attend the Professional Darts Corporation Qualifying School in 2021.

Van Barneveld will try to win back a PDC tour card, having relinquished his professional status at the end of 2019.

The 53-year-old Dutchman, known widely as 'Barney', is one of only three players to win five world titles.

"It's very simple. I miss it terribly," Van Barneveld he told RTL News.

"I think the decision [to retire] was the right one, but I have now had a lot of time to think about it.

"Because I haven't been myself for the past two or three years, you don't always make the right decisions.

"Your head is haunted and you're a nightmare for everyone, but that's different now. I'm looking forward to it."

Van Barneveld won the British Darts Organisation (BDO) title in 1998, 1999, 2003 and 2005 before moving to the PDC and beating Phil Taylor in the 2007 final.

In November 2018, he announced his intention to retire after the 2019 season, which ended with a first-round upset by Darin Young at the World Championship.

He has linked up with former manager Ben de Kok, who also works with Jeffrey de Zwaan, the PDC world number 24 mentored by Van Barneveld before winning his PDC Tour Card as a teenager in 2015.

"I now have a unique opportunity to realise my dream and to work in a team. I think that is the solution for me," added Van Barneveld.

"I signed for three years, so we have the chance to at least get a tour card for three years."

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