The PDC World Darts Championship is over with Peter Wright crowned champion once again, but fans won’t be treated to another traditional year-opening darts tournament.
For years, the BDO World Championship would open up each calendar year, following in the footsteps, hot on the heels, of the PDC tournament, which stands toe-to-toe with the glitz and glam of Premier League football in December.
However, the BDO tournament won’t go ahead in 2022, leaving darts fans at a loss as to how to spend their January evenings.
We round up what happened to the BDO World Darts Championship and why it won’t feature on the sporting calendar in 2022 and beyond.
Why is there no BDO World Darts Championship 2022?
Well, to put it simply, the BDO no longer functions.
The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) was formed after a split from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) in the early ’90s, and many of the game’s top players went along with the new PDC tour with its own world championship.
This was the first nudge of the snowball down the hill for the BDO, as they never recovered from the divide.
The World Darts Federation demoted the BDO to associate member status in 2019 following irregularities at the Masters event that year.
Players complained of a venue that was too small, while a number of players weren’t registered for the event without knowing they had to be.
Fake names were also used in the draw, leading to a redraw, culminating in truly farcical scenes and a heated meeting between the top-seeded players and organisation officials. The BDO simply couldn’t recover from the blows to its reputation in recent years.
The 2020 tournament was the last to be played, but wasn’t without its own controversy. The lack of a tournament sponsor meant prize money had to be slashed in the run-up to the competition, and many players dropped out while one-time large crowds dwindled to minimal levels.
In September 2020, the BDO went into liquidation and the 2021 was officially scrapped. Last year was the first without a BDO World Darts Championship since 1978.
Darts fans will still be able to soak up many former BDO alumni strutting their stuff, including one of their most recent top talents Glen Durrant, in the PDC ranks, but the BDO is no more.
If you’re looking for something else to watch check out our TV Guide.