It is no exaggeration to say that the nucleus of the darts boom in Germany is in the district of Munich. This does not necessarily have to do with the fact that dart throwing is practiced particularly eagerly and successfully here. Rather, it is broadcast from here throughout the country. The Sport 1 station, based in the Medienpark between Ismaning and Unterföhring, has been showing the world championships in this sport since 2004.
And he posted record ratings this year: for the first time, more than three million viewers were there when the cheats flew at Alexandra Palace in London. During the World Cup semi-finals, which Saarlander Gabriel “Gaga” Clemens lost to Michael Smith, who later won the title, the number peaked at 3.78 million. These are just the figures from the free TV broadcaster Sport 1, mind you, because many of the fanatical fans subscribe to the streaming service provider Dazn, which is also based in the Medienpark and broadcasts all events of the professional association PDC over the course of a year does not publish its user numbers.
“Gaga Clemens is the Boris Becker of darts,” says pub owner Klaus Wolhorn
Darts, the “golf of the working class”, as the former PDC boss Barry Hearn once called it, because you don’t need anything besides arrows and a cork board, may actually be on the way to becoming a national sport, which is evident from the current World Cup successes of the local darts players is still properly fired up: Clemens was the first German to reach the round of the last four, in Brandenburg’s Martin Schindler another made it into the round of 16. “The enthusiasm is huge,” says Klaus Wolhorn, who runs the “Dart Pub 180” in Haar, where one of the most successful Upper Bavarian clubs of the same name is based. “Gaga Clemens is the Boris Becker of darts. I expect even greater euphoria after this World Cup.”
Public viewing: In the Dart Pub 180 Haar, the athletes follow the World Cup final between Michael Smith and Michael van Gerwen.
(Photo: Claus Schunk)
The sport was already growing before the recent successes of Clemens and Co., between 2016 and 2022 the number of members of the German Darts Association (DDV) almost doubled from just over 10,000 to almost 20,000.
And so the Dart Pub in Haar is now open every day, at least in autumn and winter. Around 20 players regularly bustle around the discs, divided into four steel and 14 electronic darts teams in various constellations. The most prominent darts player from Haar is Michael Unterbuchner, who was born in Landsberg and is 164th in the very current PDC world rankings. Unterbuchner has twice reached the semi-finals of a world championship, but each time at the competing world association BDO, which does not have as much prestige as the PDC.
“The enthusiasm is huge”: Klaus Wolhorn, owner of the Haarer Pub, is a passionate darts player himself.
(Photo: Claus Schunk)
“Michael trains like a madman,” says pub boss Klaus Wolhorn, for whom it is a stroke of luck that Unterbuchner, who became German team champion in 2016 with the Black Birds Kelheim, now plays for the Haarer club in addition to his international appearances in everyday league life . Because “Dart Pub 180” also has ambitions: The first team wants to go back to the Bavarian league, they are currently leading the two classes lower regional league.
Haar is not the only darts stronghold in the district, for example TSV Neuried has had its own department for a few years after the former darts players of TSV Forstenried found asylum there. “The club has given us a great reception,” says division manager Helmut Griesshammer, who is particularly looking forward to his dart throwers getting their own practice room soon: “Then we can train twice a week and not just once like before.”
Because so far, the Neurieder have been practicing in the club restaurant, on Monday, because that’s the day off there. “We strictly adhere to the protection of minors, so serving alcohol is absolutely forbidden.” In this respect, the rest day is ideal, because there are already some young talents with the TSV darts. And they are still willing to accept players, “even if we are currently exploding in terms of interest,” said Griesshammer.
Michael Kreuzpaintner also takes care of the education of the youth. The Neubiberger is game director in the Upper Bavarian Darts Association and has been working as a trainer for a good six years. “In Bavaria we started issuing licenses for trainers, and other regional associations are now following suit,” says Kreuzpaintner, who recently held a course with the best students and juniors from all over Bavaria. For younger players up to the age of 13 there is not yet the rule that you have to end a 501 leg with a double field, otherwise, in addition to throwing and aiming skills, it is also important for the youngest to be good at arithmetic.
Aiming and throwing: While the computer automatically takes over the bookkeeping with electronic darts, the athletes also have to do the arithmetic themselves with traditional steel darts.
(Photo: Claus Schunk)
Kreuzpaintner has been playing actively since 2007, when 16-time world champion Phil Taylor and Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld fought what was perhaps the most spectacular World Cup final in darts history to date. He started with electronic darts and has been playing steel darts for seven years – at TSV 1860 Munich, which not only has its own darts department, but also a training room in the former Löwen press room.
The darts players in Unterschleißheim are not doing so well. They practice their sport in the Pilsstube Hopfenland, two clubs have been training here since their former restaurant was converted into a car dealership, as host Milan Opacak explains. “If Bayern play in the Champions League or Bundesliga, then unfortunately no darts can be played because there are too many guests.” Maybe Gaga Clemens will manage to shake up these priorities – at least in the Pilsstube – in the next few years.