"We’ve always got to be one step ahead" - Barry Hearn hints at World Series change of direction with lower ranked players benefiting

After the latest double header of World Series of Darts events in Australia and New Zealand, it has once again showcased the worldwide appeal of darts with both tournaments supported passionately by its fans. However, the series could be in for some change in the future with Barry Hearn not counting out a change to the format in the future as they continue to try and please the darts fans.

Hearn spoke to Online Darts on the World Series events in the Middle East, acknowledging events that are out of their hands which could be a stumbling block. "I mean, they work on a yearly basis, so you never say... Bahrain would probably do a 10-year deal because they’re really invested in it. But Saudi Arabia are saying, 'No, we want this.'

"They’ve got a contract. Other places are... I mean, we can’t underestimate the problems of this Middle East conflict. That’s what I mean, yeah, which could affect anything. But all we can do is make sure that we’re there, ready to play, ready to earn. And the players, you know, they love it as well."

This could prove to be a dilemma in the future with the events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia taking place at the start of the year following the PDC World Darts Championship. This means the PDC need to be on their feet with back-up solutions in mind to keep the show going. That is where Hong Kong comes in with the possibility of an event being played there in 2027.

"At the moment, with the conflict in the Middle East, until we actually close off dates, we have a very, very restrictive number of dates available. And that’s because of the tournament structures, obviously," Hearn explained.

"We have to give priority to those customers that have been with us and have got a contract for signing. But we also have to be aware that the price of a pint goes up, you know, and these people around the world need to be educated that it’s going to cost them money."

He used a comparison from a different sport. "If you go back to the golf comparison, you want Tiger in your event, well, you’ve got to come to the table with something serious. You want just a darts event without mentioning the Littler's and the Van Gerwen's and the Luke Humphries'? They’re still top-quality events. So it’s an education process."

This just shows how far darts has come. "This is not as it might have been 10 years ago: 'A little cheapy. Oh, we’ll get some darts players. That’ll be fun.' No, this is a proper business, employing proper sportsmen and women."

North America is an area of the world where darts has not really taken off, but the hype is most certainly start to brew with that a possible market to strengthen in. "I think when you look at the world, as I do — I’m asleep thinking of the world — and I look at the areas and say, 'Are we doing enough?' When I go around the world, most of the time I say, 'We’re doing a really good job.'" Hearn continued.

"Generally speaking, at tournaments in those countries, we have a broadcast deal that brings in a lot of money. But when you look at the potential of America, it’s quite staggering. But there’s also a lot of negatives. We don’t have a lot of young people playing darts in America."

He was adamant that darts, along with other sports, could have a lot of potential and a big future in that part of the world. "We have a lot of people playing darts. Our nine-ball pool business, the World Nineball Tour, is also one of those underutilised sports in America. And I think together with darts, that’s the attack that we’re doing."

There is the potential for it to be a huge opportunity in the future, as Hearn also mentioned China and Southeast Asia as another place to capitalise. But before this can occur, there has to be a plan in place. "But do we have the dates? Do they have the money? We don’t go anywhere anymore where we used to say, 'We’ll go there for free, because it’ll be good to spread the game.'"

The onus was on them to keep up with the growing hype of the sport. "The game is spreading with or without us. It’s going crazy all around the world. So we have to set the bar at a certain level."

The players have to know they’ve got a certain income. And I think other players have got to know they have the ability to get into that bracket.

Hearn compared it to the Premier League Darts in the sense that there was always the chance of changing it and switching it up a bit. "The World Series is a difficult one, you know. It’s a bit like the Premier League formats as well. It’s not broken, so you don’t fix it. It’s too easy to say that. We’ve always got to be one step ahead."

He went on to confirm that something could possibly be in the works. "That’s the sort of thing we’re looking at at the moment. Now, especially on the Premier League, does it need a little bit of freshening? World Series, I think we’re probably looking at saying we have an opportunity now to perhaps take some lower-ranked players and give them the experience of a World Series tour."

It would be a huge boost for them, but it was pivotal that the big guns were involved. "That’s an investment in their future: knowing how to handle the media, the different crowds, learning how to entertain, which is all vitally important. At the same time, the big players are essential because they’re the ones the crowd want to see because they’ve read about them or seen them on our TV syndication around the world."

One of the biggest complaints about it is the fact that the players competing in it are the same as the premier League, meaning fans are watching the same names week in, week out. Hearn admitted that change could be on the horizon.

"Yes, I think there’s a movement that we’ve got to look at. And we’ve got to be quite selfish about it," he stated. "We’ve got to be business-like about it. We’re not doing people favours because they’ve been around for a long time. Those days are gone."

They are always on the quest for that next superstar. "What you earned 10 years ago doesn’t do you a favour now. There will always be the exceptions of people that go down the rankings. But to any vibrant sport, we’ve got to show that they’re being replaced by new superstars. And my concern is that they’ve got to grow into that as well as people and as well as entertainers. And you will see them. I think the rankings will be less important on World Series, especially, than they have been."

He specifically called out Josh Rock and Wessel Nijman, two young players who have shown big potential. While Rock has played on the World Series a few times this year, Hearn stressed the importance of getting young players like them game time on the big stage in front of huge audiences to help their development.

"Let’s put a few names out there. Josh Rock has played a couple, I think. He’s a youngster with a future. Wessel Nijman looks a spectacular player. They need experience on that big stage to see if they’re good enough to go to the next level."

The motivation should come from the Premier League. "This is why a Premier League player... It’s real hard work. Premier League is good money, but it’s hard work. But they should be looking at that as, 'I’ve got to compete with the best for the next 10 years.' So I’ve got to put in enough work to make sure I can produce my best, which means that the customer that buys a ticket sees excellence. And people will always pay for excellence."