Iconic Blackpool Tower turns red in honor of defending champion Nathan Aspinall

The world-famous Blackpool Tower was lit red Friday night to honor defending champion Nathan Aspinall. 'The Asp' returned to the English coastal city on Friday to try to prolong his title won last year.

The Professional Darts Corporation had the Blackpool Tower colored red. It was a nod to the color of the shirt Aspinall always wears during matches, as was the case with his World Matchplay title last season.

The World Matchplay is one of the biggest tournaments of the season. It traditionally takes place at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, which also hosted the event at the first edition of the World Matchplay in 1994.

At the iconic tournament, 32 top players will compete for the Phil Taylor Trophy and £800,000 in prize money from July 13 to 21. Last year, Aspinall was too strong for Jonny Clayton in the final to win his first World Matchplay title. Aspinall put on an amazing display of 11 consecutive legs en route to an 18-6 win over Clayton. It earned him the top prize of 200,000 pounds.

Aspinall felt honored that the Blackpool Tower was temporarily colored in red to honor his achievement. "It was great to see my colours on such an iconic landmark as the Blackpool Tower.

"As a local competition for me, it's a great motivation leading into the event to have this level of support. Lots of friends and family are coming down too which will really help as I look to defend my World Matchplay title."

For Aspinall, the World Matchplay begins on Saturday night with a duel against debutant Luke Woodhouse. 'The Asp' can join an illustrious list next week. In the past, only Rod Harrington, Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen managed to defend their titles at the World Matchplay. Aspinall can therefore become the fourth player to succeed in doing so.