“He might hit three nine-darters, he might hit back-to-back nine-darters, he might average 150” – Dan Dawson on Luke Littler’s unprecedented impact

The international rise of darts has shifted into a new gear in recent years. While the sport has been packing arenas across Europe for years and is gaining serious traction in Australia, the PDC is increasingly targeting the United States. With a new media deal with ESPN, commentator Dan Dawson says another key step has been taken to firmly put darts on the map on the other side of the Atlantic.

During the recent World Matchplay, American fans could follow the entire tournament via ESPN+, while the final was also broadcast live on ESPN2. According to Dawson, this is far more than just a new television partner.

The experienced commentator sees the partnership with ESPN as a crucial development for the sport’s continued growth in North America. He believes the PDC has mainly created the conditions in recent years to drive global growth, but it is then up to major media partners to bring the story to a wider audience.

“There’s only so much the PDC can do. They’ve created an environment where the sport has been able to grow and get better,” Dawson told Awful Announcing.

Dawson says Sky Sports played a key role in that for years in Great Britain. Where darts was once dismissed as a cozy pub game, the British sports broadcaster chose to give it the same professional treatment as football, golf, or Formula 1.

“Sky said no, this is a proper professional sport. And we will treat it properly. Lo and behold if you give something respect, then a lot of people come to respect it a bit more.”

He believes the partnership with ESPN can have a similar effect in the United States. “With ESPN, these stories are going to reach a bigger audience and hopefully it helps give this sport a foothold in North America that can help it grow and grow and grow.”

Although the United States is traditionally a tough market for international sports, Dawson sees clear signs that darts is slowly but surely establishing itself.

He says the number of American viewers of PDC tournaments has risen sharply in recent years. Interest is also growing rapidly on social media, and events are drawing more and more attendees.

He cites the recent World Series events in New York as an example. “Their ticket sales at MSG, I know we had the World Cup on so there was a lot of people from Europe as well, but it was absolutely chalk and cheese compared to when we first went to MSG. And that was better than we were doing for the US Darts Masters in Vegas a few years ago. So there is growth.”

Still, Dawson knows success in America is never a given. “It is a phenomenally hard market to break into and get a piece of that enormous pie. But it does appear to be gaining some sort of traction. Luke Littler is a huge part of that.”

He believes Luke Littler plays an important role in that. With his performances, the reigning world champion has attracted a new global audience, which has also piqued the curiosity of American sports fans.

According to Dawson, the next big step is obvious: an American player who can genuinely contend for the biggest titles.

The PDC has therefore been investing for some time in the development of darts in North America, including through the CDC Tour. The ultimate goal is clear. “They want a homegrown champion to go up against the big guns. That is an easy story, someone to cheer for from the North American fans.”

Although many supporters are now fans of Luke Littler or other European stars, a successful homegrown player remains invaluable, Dawson says. “It’s good to have. People want to see their champions perform.”

He says a great deal of time, money, and energy has been invested in talent development in North America in recent years. That’s why he is confident that the breakthrough is only a matter of time. “Who knows when you get that North American champion coming through? But it could be tomorrow. It could be next year. And it will be very exciting to see what happens when it does, and I believe it is when.”

Dawson also points out that darts is relatively accessible. “It doesn’t take that long for someone to go from picking up a dart for the first time to getting to the elite level if they’re talented, if they’re committed, if they’re dedicated. Not everyone can do it, if they could I wouldn’t be talking to you, I’d be a darts player and earning a lot more money than I do now."

The sport’s biggest headliner remains Luke Littler. The nineteen-year-old Englishman is in the midst of a season that, according to Dawson, is hardly comparable to previous achievements.

With the world title and the World Matchplay crown among his achievements, Littler has once again made history. His performance in Blackpool, in particular, left a deep impression. “That was the greatest performance over an entire campaign anybody’s ever seen at the World Matchplay.”

Even so, Dawson does not expect such numbers to remain the standard for years. “I don’t think he’s going to play like that forever. It’d be scary if he does and everybody else is going to have to do a lot of work just to make things awkward for him, let alone beat him.”

That does not mean, in his view, that Littler is unbeatable. The young Englishman escaped elimination several times over the past twelve months and even survived match darts against him in multiple major finals. “He has had a little bit of fortune. There are a number of those major titles over the last 12 months where he has survived match darts or been behind or games he could have lost.”

The question Dawson has asked himself for years is whether a dominant player is ultimately good for the sport. He previously watched Phil Taylor win almost everything for years, followed by a similar spell for Michael van Gerwen. Now Luke Littler seems to be taking on that role.

The answer turns out to be less straightforward than it seems. On one hand, Dawson enjoys a deep field where many different players win big titles. “You saw all these different winners from outside the Top 32 in the world. Andrew Gilding at the UK Open, Chris Dobey, Ross Smith. I loved it, I absolutely loved it. But you don’t need to convince me.”

At the same time, he realises that the average sports fan views darts differently from the diehard follower. “I already love darts. I’m going to be watching it anyways. It’s the millions of other people.”

A true superstar, Dawson argues, can persuade new viewers to switch on the TV. “You had it with Phil Taylor, you had with Michael Van Gerwen, and now you have it with Luke Littler. Somebody says, ‘why do you put the darts on?’”

According to Dawson, that is exactly what a global sport needs. “He might hit three nine-darters, he might hit back-to-back nine-darters, he might average 150. Who knows.”

That very unpredictability, combined with Littler’s exceptional talent, makes him, in the commentator’s view, a unique crowd-puller. “But this guy is box office. And having that sort of star quality is a huge positive.”