THE explosion in the interest in darts in Ireland over recent times has been a sight to behold, but Matt Smith of Flightclub.ie reckons there is more to come.
Matt, who sponsors a number of the leading darts players in Ireland, insists the game will grow even more when all those playing it take it out of their bedrooms and into the competitive sphere.
And Matt says competitions like the new three-tier INDO Players Championship - which Flightclub.ie will also be sponsoring - will help to bring that about.
He told Darts In Ireland: "We have seen the interest in darts grow so much here recently, but I think there's another explosion to come over the next year as I believe all those who are playing the game at home still outnumber those who play in competitions.
"When many more of them come out to play then the game is going to grow even more."
Part of that success is down to the number of competitions that players can enter and excel at.
Matt said the new INDO Players Championship is one of those that has the potential to revolutionise the game here.
The Players Championship will be split into three different divisions, with Division A for players with a 70 plus average, Division B for players averaging 55-69 and Division C for players with averages of 54 or under.
The averages will be decided through Dart Connect, with the winner of each division winning a spot at the WDF World Masters.
Matt said: "We've had this in soft tip darts where players get to play in a competition against other players at their level.
"It's only now that the INDO can record each players stats through Dart Connect that they can split it like this and it's great as it's giving players at all levels of the game an opportunity to compete."
Meanwhile, Matt says he has been impressed at the standard being shown by players in Ireland, particularly in the youth system, which is growing all the time.
As part of that, he has also agreed through Flightclub.ie to sponsor the top 12 boys and top four girls after the conclusion of the 2025/26 INDO ranking season.
He says he gets great satisfaction at being able to help out up-and-coming players and believes it's best to work on a merit based system.
Matt added: "There are so many requests now to sponsor players, which is great, but I've had to move it to a performance based system linked up to the INDO rankings.
"It's great to see so many young players taking such an interest in the game and many of them are playing great darts too.
"The great thing about darts is that it doesn't take a lot to get involved in it. All you need really is the space to put up a board and you can get going.
"That's what so many are doing now and with a bit of practice and dedication they can become good at it."
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