Barry Hearn believes that darts could become a truly global sport in the coming years if his attempt to break America succeeds.
For the first time, last week PDC hosted the US Masters – the first event of the 2022 World Championships – at the legendary venue of Madison Square Garden, where Michael Smith emerged victorious after three days of action in front of nearly everyone from the stock crowd.
In a busy sporting environment, darts have struggled to penetrate the US, but PDC President Hearn believes it is only a matter of time. If darts spread in the United States, Hearn says, the sport could spread around the world, similar to how golf expanded its rounds.
“If we can achieve what we think we can achieve in America, we can completely change the face of darts globally,” Hearn told the Weekly Dartscast podcast. “We are getting closer and closer to the golf model for travel around the world.
We’re seeing numbers of areas we’ve never seen before. We enjoy the beauty of being a sport where there are no barriers to our entry, which I think is the key in these times for more variety. It doesn’t matter if you are fat or skinny, black or white, Christian or Muslim, it is only important that you shoot arrows. And that’s how darts should be, it’s the principle of merit.
“This is an important step this weekend. Americans are looking forward to a relatively new sport for America that has been so successful around the world.
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“There is no rhyme or reason why it shouldn’t work in America. We have to embrace it a little more on our own, we have to invest a little bit more in infrastructure in America, but I think this is a great opportunity for this sport.”
Hearn, who last year stepped down as head of Matchroom Sport and PDC and handed control over to his son Eddie, added: “We have more interest from Japan, more interest from Southeast Asia. The World Championship is our calling card to show countries what we can do, And how can we entertain people.
“It has been collected from many different countries and we will have to be selective about where we go. The plans for globalization are well underway and I couldn’t be happier with where we are now. The world is our oyster. We hope the next two years will cement an important global sport for us. “.
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