The venue is the Alexandra Palace, London. Dozens of colored lights crisscross through a haze of body heat and a dusting from a smoke machine while 10,000-plus fans sing, chant, and roar in rhythmic, hooliganistic bliss. Michael Van Gerwen — MVG for short — stands in a doorway, at the beginning of a path that leads straight through the jubilant, inebriated crowd towards the bright lights of the stage. He’s flanked by a scantily-clad model and various handlers and event security.
Just 26 years old, he’s been called a phenomenon, Mighty Mike, and it’s not an uncommon opinion in the sport of darts to believe that MVG will someday be the Greatest Of All Time.