“For someone who doesn’t appreciate football, I know who he is” – James Wade talks about his special meeting with Sir Alex Ferguson

James Wade has offered a rare glimpse into an unforgettable visit to Manchester United’s training complex. The English darter, one of the sport’s most familiar names for years, experienced several striking moments that day. A private conversation with legendary former manager Sir Alex Ferguson in particular left a deep impression on “The Machine.”

Wade visited the iconic Carrington complex together with darts icon Phil Taylor. Although the multiple major winner is a big name worldwide within darts, he walked into the training center without expectations. In fact, Wade thought no footballer would recognise him at all.

The Englishman spoke candidly about football never having played a major role in his life. As a result, the visit initially felt a bit uncomfortable. “Football has never really been my thing,” said Wade. “Which, you get left out of quite a lot of things because most blokes like football, they talk about football all the time. It’s always on at the pub but it’s not been my thing.”

That’s precisely why he didn’t expect Manchester United players to know him at all. “We are walking around the training ground and I am like, none of these footballers are going to know me.”

According to Wade, the situation changed completely when Ryan Giggs approached him directly during the tour. “He ran over to me, ‘Alright Wadey’. I thought, how does he know me? How does he know my name.”

For Wade, it confirmed how popular darts has become in Great Britain. Where darts was once seen mainly as a pub sport, players are now major sports stars followed by athletes from other disciplines. “That was a moment when I realised darts today is much bigger than people sometimes think,” Wade said.

Alongside the impressive encounters, Phil Taylor also provided plenty of humour during the visit. Wade looked back laughing at a situation in Manchester United’s canteen. “We were all told this is the cafeteria, you can have something to eat but this tour has got to be quick,” Wade said. “So Phil obviously ordered mussels and he sat down to start eating. So we had to wait for that.”

According to Wade, it perfectly typified how relaxed Taylor always remained, regardless of the situation. “That’s Phil all over. He doesn’t care about anything.”

Later in the day, another comic moment followed during a session by the pool at the training complex. There, according to Wade, Taylor tried to nudge a Manchester United player toward a particular answer. “It’s a German footballer and Phil Taylor was leaning over asking, ‘Who is your favourite dart player, it is Taylor?’”

The answer, however, turned out differently than expected. “He went, ‘No. James Wade’. You should’ve seen Phil’s face, it was the best picture you would have ever seen. It was brilliant.”

The absolute highlight of the day only came at the end of the visit. Wade revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson personally invited him into his office for a one-on-one chat. Within Manchester United, Ferguson is known as an imposing figure. The Scot led the club between 1986 and 2013 to no fewer than 38 major trophies and became one of the most successful managers of all time. According to Wade, it was special that Ferguson made time at all. “Apparently that’s really unheard of and I was just in there.”

Although Wade is normally rarely impressed, he admitted that Ferguson’s presence had a big impact on him. “For someone who doesn’t appreciate football, I know who he is. I was a little bit overwhelmed with his presence."

During the conversation, Ferguson spoke not only about sport, but mainly about mentality and mindset, according to Wade. “He just asked me more about what I think and how I think. It was more of an interview."

Ferguson also showed various personal gifts and memories he had received over the years. “I was in there for five to ten minutes. It was a wow thing.”

James Wade has long been known as one of the most distinctive personalities in professional darts. The Englishman has won eleven major titles, played multiple big finals, and remains a dangerous opponent at the highest level despite the rise of a new generation.

His story about the visit to Manchester United not only shows how popular darts has become today, but also reveals another side of Wade. Behind the often stoic exterior is clearly someone who can still be moved by special encounters.

“That visit had a much bigger impact on me than I expected beforehand,” Wade ultimately admitted. “The conversation with Ferguson in particular was really special.”