Barry Hearn gives update on future of darts after Luke Littler breakout and says next 10 YEARS will be decided soon
BARRY HEARN claims the next few months will define the future direction of the PDC for the next decade.
A new TV contract with Sky Sports is being thrashed out as the sport benefits from the ‘Luke Littler effect’.
The tournament will be expanded in December from 96 players to 128 – which would mean 32 more stars, resulting in eight sessions across an extra four days.
At some point before 2030, they might move away from Ally Pally, the home of world darts since December 2007, but before that, they will look to renovate the Great Hall, where the kebabs and chips are sold, to fit in a bigger crowd.
Matchroom Sport president Hearn, a promoter for 50-plus years, said: “We sold 90,000 tickets in 15 minutes for this year’s World Championship with 300,000 people on the waiting list.
“That doesn’t automatically mean you jump into a bigger venue. Maybe we expand an existing venue, which is another way of looking at it.
“The next couple of months will be very, very relevant for the future of the PDC. The next ten years will be decided over the next couple of months.
“A ten-year plan leaves gaps, depending on circumstance. We’ll take small steps. So next year there will be 128 players instead of 96.
“Can we expand what we’ve got here? Difficult to say. Can we move next door? Possibly – let’s look at that.
“It may take a year or 18 months at least to tidy the place up, fill in the cracks in the windows, stop it leaking, but it’s possible.
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“Or is there another venue out there, probably in London or elsewhere? Initially, London makes sense for the next few years.
“One thing I’m determined to do is push into other parts of the world, which has never done before.
“We’re going to go big in the States – looking at Boston, Las Vegas and Florida – and Canada. Also go big in South-East Asia.
“We’re making money and the way to make more is to reinvest, not to take.”
According to PDC analysis, Hearn claims the average age of fans who attend the PDC World Darts Championship has shifted from 55-65 to a 20-30 demographic.
When they first moved from the Circus Tavern, Hearn claims “five per cent of our audience was women – today it’s nearly 30 per cent”.
There are proposals to offer £1million to the winner and that day may happen within the next few years.
Hearn, 76, said: “Prize money is only going one way but we’re quite conservative and we’ll build sustainable businesses.
“How quickly we can get to those landmark figures we may find out in the next couple of months, but we can’t sell any more tickets – because we’re sold out.
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“Everyone talks about ratings. For last year’s final, between Luke Littler and Luke Humphries, the ratings weren’t just bigger than football – they f***ing destroyed football.
“It wasn’t just bigger than the biggest sporting event in golf, the Ryder Cup, or tennis, or Formula One – it beat anything they’d ever put on the station.
“I don’t believe we will do it this year because last year was exceptional.
“We’re doing well. We’re probably 50 per cent up on ratings, which in today’s world of declining subscribers is an excellent performance.
“We did really well out of snooker in the boom days of the 1980s, we did well in expanding it across the world, but this is going at another level.
“I think we can create a real working man’s sport, which sits alongside golf. Why not?
“There’s a long way to go, but we can give the European Tour a close run for their money if we start upping the prize money substantially.
“I’m happy. I’m always happy. Who wouldn’t be happy with my life? I’ve got darts to watch. F***ing brilliant.
“We should rejoice. Christmas is a time for rejoicing – not just for Jesus but for the darts as well.”