The World Series of Darts is heading to New York City as the it embarks on its tour in 2020.
The iconic Madison Square Garden is to host top-class darts for the first time when the stars of the sport visit the Big Apple.
The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden will host the U.S. Darts Masters and North American Championship on June 5-6, bringing the likes of current world number one Michael van Gerwen to New York.
The World Series of Darts, promoted by the Professional Darts Corporation, incorporates six worldwide tournaments throughout each year, allowing local prospects their chance to challenge the biggest names in darts.
PDC Chairman Barry Hearn commented: “This is a fantastic development for darts to be bringing the glitz and glamour of the World Series of Darts to the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden.
“This is a world-renowned venue and 20 years ago it would have been a pipedream for darts players to take to the stage in such an iconic arena – but this is another exciting move for us as the World Series continues to grow.
“Not only will this be special for the players competing, but this is a fantastic chance for fans to see the cream of the world’s darting talent under one roof on June 5-6.”
The 2019 U.S. Darts Masters had seen England’s Nathan Aspinall – one of the new stars making his breakthrough at the top level – take victory on his World Series debut in Las Vegas.
As part of the tour, eight American and Canadian players will get their chance to take to the Hulu Theater stage in the events, which commence on Friday June 5 with the first round of the U.S Darts Masters.
The action on Saturday June 6 will be held across two sessions, with the North American Championship in the afternoon ahead of the U.S. Darts Masters quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in the evening.
New York’s arrival as a new destination on the World Series tour represents further growth for darts, which has become the biggest indoor sport in the UK over the past 20 years.
Over 300,000 fans will attend PDC events annually, while the World Series has visited Dubai, Singapore, China and Japan since being introduced six years ago.
Insider Insight: The atmosphere and engagement of darts is unrivalled, the sport builds on this to continue its global expansion and its MSG debut should act as an affirmation as to how successful it’s been in to replicating its UK engagement in new markets.
