The Dart Side of Life - The Adrian Geiler Column #3

Niko Springer’s sensational victory in Budapest and Martin Schindler’s rise into the world’s Top 16 mark two milestones that could ignite a new wave in Germany’s darts boom.

Hello dear darts friends, 

what a wild September of darts. Almost every day there was action. There were World Championship qualifiers left and right, former title holders (Michael van Gerwen, Joe Cullen, Gerwyn Price, Stephen Bunting), Martin Schindler becoming Germany’s first Top 16 player – and also a new star in German darts. Or is he really a star? 

Niko Springer shocked the darts world with his title on the European Tour in Budapest. The “Meenzer Bub” put together one of the best championship runs of all time. The average world ranking position of his opponents (Gian van Veen, Damon Heta, Rob Cross, Luke Humphries, Josh Rock, Danny Noppert) was just above 10! An extraordinary performance from an extraordinary player. 

This triumph opens many doors for Niko: World Grand Prix, Grand Slam, World Matchplay 2026. This boy probably doesn’t even need to play qualifiers anymore and is now on the other side of the ProTour qualification system. His career can really take off now. 

And yet, a discussion erupted on my Discord server. And spoiler alert: it gets a little scientific now. Off we go to Darts University! 

Darts is booming, we all know that. Prize money is exploding. Membership numbers in clubs and associations are skyrocketing. I saw it myself: In mid-September I was at the opening of the “Dartort” in Münster for BULL’S. It’s a kind of bowling alley for darts. In a cozy, modern atmosphere, darts enthusiasts can rent boards by the hour. The turnout was very encouraging and the feedback unanimous: this is exactly what was missing. 

Darts bars like Dartort are the future: darts must be accessible. It must be easy to get into this sport. There need to be low-threshold points of contact to spark interest. 

That’s one side of it. And it’s working better and better in Germany. But of course, there’s more to it than infrastructure. Otherwise, we might be a bowling nation by now. No, what’s needed are: stars! Unlike other sports, darts is booming in Germany even though there is no absolute superstar at world-class level. So far, darts has also lived off the dominance of others: a Phil Taylor in the past and Luke Littler today. And at least the latter feels rather uncomfortable in Germany. 

On the Discord server there was unanimous agreement: Darts + a superstar from Germany = the next boom. I also share this view and draw a comparison with Boris Becker, Steffi Graf and the tennis boom of the 80s and 90s. But a scientist disagreed. His thesis: before darts really arrives in the middle of society, it will take a little longer. Because being a “star” takes more than just skill. 

The scientist quotes his own (!) academic work on stardom and refers to Carsten Möller, professor of communication and media studies at the German Sport University Cologne: “Möller, 2015: Prominence alone is not enough [to be a star], but must be marked by a certain degree of popularity, admiration or veneration in order to meet the requirements of a star.” In other words: simply being world-class will not be enough for darts players in Germany to become stars and trigger a boom. In particular, the admiration for darts in society is not yet strong enough. The sport of “beer-bellied men throwing darts” just isn’t sexy. 

I think that’s a fair and valid point. This prejudice does exist. But right now we are seeing that this isn’t stopping Luke Littler from conquering the sports world (!). As the first darts player ever, he finished second in the vote for Britain’s Sports Personality of the Year. There, darts is becoming even more popular and “mainstream” than it already is. 

So how can this work in Germany? My thesis: not only, but above all, with Luke Littler. Because as with other major sports personalities (Steffi Graf, Boris Becker, Michael Schumacher), it is also the opponents who become stars as well (Monica Seles, Stefan Edberg, Mika Häkkinen). Sport thrives on rivalries. Darts as a 1v1 sport even more so. The antagonists of the very best always experience a surge of popularity in the wake of the superstars. That can be the path for German darts players. 

This can work, we’ve already seen it. In midsummer, in an absolutely untypical time for darts, two German darts players toppled two English superstars. The victories of Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko over the Lukes, Humphries and Littler, were a gigantic, worldwide sports story. Suddenly, darts received unusual attention for that time of year. 

Which brings us back to Niko Springer. No, the “Meenzer Bub” is not a star yet, despite his title. Not yet. But his qualities provide a foundation for it. 

Finally, congratulations to Martin Schindler. Since the European Tour event in Switzerland, Martin can call himself “Germany’s first Top 16 player.” Even though we’ve been preparing ourselves for this for a while now, it’s a huge deal. “The Wall” has worked hard and sacrificed a lot in recent years (including his third wedding anniversary, when he was in Milton Keynes at a Players Championship). This achievement is a milestone in darts. The fact that Martin mentioned it right away in his winner’s interview on Saturday, without even being asked, speaks volumes. It’s well deserved! 

Game on! 
Yours, 
Adrian