Ally Pally dealing with takeover of darts-mad Germans as World Championships set for growth
The sport is massive in Deutschland where the winter tournament has achieved ‘cult’ status among fans flocking to Ally Pally to cheer on their stars
Ally Pally is set for a takeover of darts-mad Germans. Next year’s world darts championship will be in a bigger venue at London’s Alexandra Palace to cope with the growing global demand for the sport.
But most of the extra seats look set to be snapped up by Germans. The sport is massive in Deutschland where the winter tournament has achieved ‘cult’ status among fans, according to German flight flinger Max Hopp.
Tickets for this year’s tournament sold out in less than 24 hours. So the Professional Darts Corporation plans to move it next year to the Pally’s bigger Great Hall to allow 180,000 fans to watch the three-week spectacle.
Max reckons that will trigger a mass of interest from his countrymen desperate to lap up the awesome arrows action live.
Hopp, 29, who beat Martin Lukeman in the first round of this year’s finals, said he felt the expectation of his entire darts-bonkers nation on his shoulders. “Ally Pally is always a great venue,” he said.
“Next year we move to a bigger arena as well so the crowd is going to be buzzing. Ally Pally is just a cult – in my country we say it’s a cult. Everyone wants to be here. Everyone wants to be up on the stage. To produce a win is massive.
“You could see it in my celebration. It was a big win for me – a lot of pressure falling off. It was just massive for me to get up on that stage.”
Hopp – nicknamed ‘Maximiser’ – became the poster boy of German darts after winning the world youth championship in 2015.
Three years later he became the first German to win a Professional Darts Corporation European tour event. But post-Covid he suffered torn ankle ligaments which hampered his form.
He has watched the sport explode in popularity in his homeland while struggling to stay among the elite and had not qualified for the world championship since 2021.
Fellow Germans world No13 Martin Schindler, 2023 semi-finallist Gabriel Clemens – No47 – and No52 Nico Springer sit above 93-rated Hopp in the rankings. But Max is delighted to be back among the contenders.
He admitted he felt intense pressure to be a hit because the sport is so popular back home where it has gone from a hobby to potential career. “We all want to improve darts and we all want darts to explode in Germany,” he said.
“I think we’re on a pretty good path. We have some pretty good players. But we’re also human – don’t forget that. Darts was our hobby before it became our job. So we still have to learn how to deal with certain situations.
“I think we’re doing quite well overall. We have some great players. Look at Martin Schindler and Nico Springer and what they are doing. They are the massive players right now. I think the whole of Germany is still looking for that one guy to really kick on.”
A record 2.86 million Germans tuned in to watch last year’s World Championship final on TV – won by Brit teen sensation Luke Littler. Telly bosses reckon viewing figures will eclipse that this year.
Fans’ website DartsPlanet predicted the sport was braced for a German invasion. It said: “While the UK undoubtedly laid the groundwork, Germany and its players have done a good job of taking darts to a new stratosphere of popularity.
“No one does it like the German fans. Just spend a few minutes watching darts broadcasts from venues like Berlin’s Mercedes-Benz Arena and you’ll notice something incredible.
“The electricity of the German crowd can not be gotten anywhere else in the world. The costumes are as flashy as they come, the chants are ever so loud and with every triple-20 hit German fans make their adoration for the game known.
“It also has to be said Germany put their money where their mouth is. The country is the scene of high-profile competitions like the European Darts Championship and the World Cup of Darts.
“These events are the livewires of the local dart scene. The sheer scale of these events have inspired a new wave of German players to step up on the big stage. The foundation of the German dart scene runs deep.
“Local clubs and leagues are growing in leaps and bounds, as they do a good job of introducing young players to the sport well before they hit their teens.
“You get that on one hand and pair it with a country that loves efficiency and strategy on the other hand. What you get is a fertile breeding ground for darts excellence.”
