SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Paddy Power has revealed a new-look dartboard ahead of the World Championship as part of its mission to turn the Ally Pally green.
The Irish bookmaker became the new title sponsor of the tournament – running from 15 December to 3 January – through a deal formed in July this year.
During an official launch event yesterday, the new sponsor unveiled the brand new dartboard from Winmau – which instead features a green treble 20 rather than red.
A spokesman for Paddy Power said: “First impressions mean everything and as new sponsors we want to make our mark – but this isn’t just about the fact the Irish are coming.
“We saw last year’s tournament make headlines all over the world. Hopefully we can play a small part in making this year’s just that 1% better.
“And yes – as an Irish brand, the thought of invading an icon of British pub culture and turning the treble 20 green had its own added appeal.”
The bookmaker also backed its decision with research, which has proved that the colour green sits at the centre of a person’s visual spectrum while red and blue reside at either end of the scale, making them harder to see.
Meanwhile, PDC Chief Executive Matthew Porter expressed how the organisation has always been keen to ‘evolve with the times’.
“If after 30 years of our World Championship being played on a traditional dartboard, change means improvement for the standard and quality of the sport, and it directly benefits the health of players, then we owe it to them to give it a go,” he added.
“We saw 901 180s struck during last year’s tournament and maybe we’ll break the 1,000 mark this year for the first time ever. It’s great to be working with Paddy Power and we hope the players are as excited about this change as we are.”
Current World Champion Michael Smith, former winners Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price, and ‘Queen of the Palace’ Fallon Sherrock are amongst some of the top players soon to see the new dartboard first-hand.
