"It’s like no other experience. The crowd are absolutely crazy, the stage is humongous": James Wade sees the World Championship as the ultimate season finale

For James Wade, the World Darts Championship has been circled in red on the calendar for years. This season too, the world championship at Alexandra Palace is the definitive finale to a long and intense campaign.

He begins his 21st consecutive Worlds on Wednesday evening, when he faces Japan’s Ryusei Azemoto. After a strong season and a return to the top eight of the world rankings, Wade approaches the tournament that still doesn’t complete his impressive résumé with mixed feelings.

The Sid Waddell Trophy is still missing from the honours list of “The Machine.” And that stings, though Wade knows better than anyone that the World Darts Championship is a category of its own within the sport. “It’s like no other experience. The crowd are absolutely crazy, the stage is humongous, and it’s an amazing tournament,” claimed Wade.

For Wade, the Worlds feels like the ultimate year-end reckoning. "It’s the end of the year, it’s the finale, and the prize money is quite considerable. It’s definitely a unique tournament.”

Strikingly, Wade speaks openly about his uneasy relationship with Alexandra Palace. Despite four semi-finals and memorable moments, such as his nine-darter against Stephen Bunting in 2021, he has few fond memories of the iconic stage. Yet he returns every year with the same hunger.

That has everything to do with what is at stake. With a £1 million top prize for the world champion, the stakes are higher than ever. Wade clearly remembers how those figures once seemed unimaginable. “Barry [Hearn] muttered the words many years ago, ‘There will be a million pounds for the winner,’ and everyone just took it with a pinch of salt, but he’s delivered,” Wade recalled.

The leap the sport has made continues to amaze him. “To see a million pounds is quite crazy. I remember in the early days, we were playing for a thousand pounds, so to play for a million pounds in one tournament is quite crazy; you can see how far darts has come.”

Wade arrives in London this year with numbers that inspire belief. He won Players Championship 19, reached the final of both the UK Open and the World Matchplay, and also made four more semi-finals at televised events. Those consistent performances lifted him back to seventh in the world rankings.

Yet Wade knows results on paper mean little once he climbs the steps at Alexandra Palace. “I’ve probably had four of those where I’ve played sensible darts; the others have been not so sensible,” added the ten-time televised title winner.

That honesty typifies Wade, who has operated at the highest level for more than two decades. “I’m lucky to be involved in the game where it’s been, and I’ve been part of that for 20-odd years."

At 42, Wade now belongs to the veterans of the circuit. His 21 consecutive Worlds appearances underline his exceptional durability in a sport that is getting younger and more explosive. He regards that with some amazement. “That’s something I’m lucky to be part of, and I believe that I’ve played my part in some way."

That experience must now help him finally write the one missing chapter. Opponent Ryusei Azemoto is not an unfamiliar name to Wade, but he is someone he takes seriously. In today’s darts, no one can afford a false start, especially not on a stage where nerves and expectations take on a life of their own.

Wade knows that better than anyone. “I’ve been lucky, and I’ve had some great experiences. I have been really fortunate.”