You could be forgiven for thinking that Madison Square Garden was hosting a rock concert disguised as a darts competition this weekend.
Between the choice of iconic venue, an appearance from 18-year-old global superstar Luke Littler (who was featured in no less than the New York Times the day before the start of the tournament) and the latest kick-ass walk-on from former world champion Stephen Bunting, this year's North American stop on the PDC Tour is only missing the overpriced T-shirts and fans with lighters held aloft.
"It's a special feeling, especially when you're playing in these huge arenas and everyone's singing a song back to you," Bunting told Covers prior to the start of the bet365 PDC US Darts Masters, which kicks off Friday night. "It's so important. People don't just come for the darts anymore."
And here's the thing – even if Americans do head to MSG for the darts, they'll be treated to some of the best players on the planet. The top four players on the PDC's Order of Merit List are here, including No. 1 Luke Humphries and namesake Littler, who is ranked second and captured the PDC World Darts Championship to open 2025. Bunting sits fourth on the list, behind No. 3 Michael van Gerwen.
2025 US Darts Masters odds
| Player |  |
|---|---|
| Luke Littler | +175 |
| Luke Humphries | +350 |
| Gerwyn Price | +550 |
| Michael van Gerwen | +650 |
| Stephen Bunting | +900 |
| Damon Heta | +1200 |
| Nathan Aspinall | +1200 |
| Rob Cross | +1200 |
Odds as of June 27. Check out our PDC US Darts Masters best bets and predictions here.
The combination of skill and spectacle is a recipe for success in just about any sport – but while the UK has fully embraced professional darts culture, it has yet to make the same impact on the other side of the Atlantic. That said, things are beginning to change, with this year marking the third straight visit from the PDC to The Theater at MSG – and if last year's turnout is any indicator, the sport known more colloquially as a bar favorite might finally be carving out a meaningful spot in the North American sports scene.
"It'll probably be a sleepless night"
The impact of the venue isn't lost on the 16 players who will compete over the two-day tournament – especially Bunting, who is making his first visit to the Garden.
"It'll probably be a sleepless night (Thursday), to be honest," Bunting told Covers. "There's so much history that goes with that arena. As soon as you mention MSG, you just think of how big that venue is, and to think that our little old game of darts is going to be at MSG again ... I'm just so happy that I'll get a chance to do my walk on there."
Bunting's walk on will to be one of the highlights for what could be a record North American crowd. Last year's event set the standard, with approximately 3,600 fans turning out to watch Rob Cross edge out Gerwyn Price 8-7 in a thrilling final.
Bunting, who enters to "Titanium" by David Guetta (featuring Sia), has gone viral for his electric entrance. A simple Google search of his name produces multiple video clips of the 40-year-old encouraging fans to make noise as he walks the red carpet, high-fiving and signing autographs as fans belt out his iconic theme.
"(The walk on is) so important," Bunting said. "I think obviously that's the first thing that the people see when you're in a venue. So it's got to be be right and it's got to be punchy and it's got to get everyone gripped, even people who are watching on the TV.
"We have the pyrotechnics on the stage as well, which really helps, and the dancing girls ... it's all the big show. That's what we're there to do. We're there to entertain people."
Littler's the Next Big Thing
Few players have done more to entertain the masses than Littler, who has skyrocketed to the top of the sport in both performance and popularity.
Littler, whose exploits have become a regular staple of New York Times coverage for two years and counting, is the unquestioned biggest name in the sport – and a victory this week in New York City might just catapult his legend even higher.
The humble English teenager made his first visit to MSG at last year's US Darts Masters, losing 7-6 to Price in the final four.
"It was definitely a good atmosphere last year," said Littler. "I got to the semifinals, and obviously I want to go that one step closer and hopefully pick up the trophy and be a US Darts Master this weekend."
Littler has enjoyed a stratospheric rise to prominence, finishing runner-up in BBC Sports Personality of the Year voting in 2024 while appearing on media around the world – highlighted by a central role in the Sky Sports documentary "Game of Throws: Inside Darts" which originally aired last December and centered around the PDC World Championship.
"It was my debut for the World Championships," said Littler, who reached the final as an unseeded player but ultimately fell 7-4 to Humphries. "Just having cameras every day, recording, filming my journey, it was cool. Picking up the trophy (in my) debut, it would have been even better. But the documentary as a whole it was really good."
The next Drive to Survive?
"Game of Throws" was a hit in the UK – and with the growth in popularity worldwide, it's conceivable that darts might soon get a proper Netflix treatment similar to how Formula 1 was introduced to millions of American viewers through the critically acclaimed "Drive to Survive" documentary.
Littler says that darts doesn't necessarily need a Netflix doc, but acknowledges that the impact could be astronomical.
"(The PDC is) in a very good place at the minute," Littler told Covers. "It's only going to get bigger and better. The venues, the places we travel to, they're going to get bigger. But I'm sure if we do get a documentary, I think it'll blow the roof off. If it does get onto Netflix, it'll be even bigger and better for us players and the fans."
Bunting sees one major difference between "Drive to Survive" and a prospective Netflix darts series – and believes that differentiator could make it wildly popular.
If we can get something out there where people see the personalities of the players, see how good the players are, and how easy it is of a sport to get into, then I think, yeah, quite possibly we could really see the sport grow over here in America," Bunting said.
"I've seen it tenfold in the UK just with the Luke Littler situation, how big darts have actually become back home. And I do believe that it's only a matter of time before we do grow all over the world. It's so important for our sport to continue to grow. And Netflix could be definitely an avenue for that."
Bunting believes that providing more of a behind-the-curtain look at the sport would also foster major growth.
"I think it'd be very intriguing for the public to be able to see behind the scenes, the banter with each of the players, the practises, routines, what we go through, to get to where we actually are," he told Covers. "And then the setups in the venues, how long it takes to derig and all that sort of stuff, that people don't really appreciate that we see as well."
PDC has hit the bullseye
One other impact of a US-focused darts documentary: A window into just how good the best players in the world have it at the moment.
The top two players in the Order of Merit – Humphries and Littler – have already earned more than £1.3 million over the past 24 months, with 10 players having taken home at least £500,000. Tournament purses are bigger than ever, with Littler earning a cool £500,000 for his world championship win in January.
The 2025 schedule includes stops in Bahrain, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland and Australia, among other locales. What began as a largely UK-focused circuit now features stops in nine different countrys, with more almost certainly on the way.
And then there are the rabid followings. Darts stars are royalty within their sport, as evidenced by unconscious fan reactions to walk ons, match victories, and even 180s (a term named after the maximum score for a three-dart turn where the player hits triple 60 each time).
Big money? Global travel? Grown adults chanting your name? What more could someone want? It's no surprise, then, that Littler has absolutely no qualms with where things stand – nor does he have any desire to change it.
"Yeah, there's not a lot," Littler told Covers. "The people behind the scenes, they'll (have) ideas for the next few years, they'll always be ahead of the schedule, getting things ready. But I'm not sure what I would do (to change things).
"The guys behind the scenes, they know what they're doing, they know what's planned for us players. And if they do come up with some things, you just kind of roll with it at that point, and trust that they know what they're doing. They're the ones that organize this thing. And we just trust the process."
Bunting and Littler spoke to Covers on behalf of bet365, the official sponsor of the PDC US Darts Masters. bet365 returns to The Theater at Madison Square for a third year, with eight of the world's top stars battling it out against eight top talents from North America for TV silverware. Full Terms and Conditions apply. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800 GAMBLER.
