Over December and early January, Professional darts captured the attention of a global audience with the largest viewing figures EVER. The Paddy Power World Darts Championship, the showpiece event in the PDC calendar, took place from 15th December 2023 – 3rd January 2024 at the stunning Alexandra Palace, London.
Tens of Thousands of fans travelled to “Ally Pally” for the most prestigious event in Darts, which saw the world’s top darts players compete to be crowned World Champion. The atmosphere was electric, with fans cheering and chanting for their favourite players. It was a thrilling experience, witnessing the skill and precision of the world’s top darts players in action as they battled it out for the coveted title.
Paddy Power took over the whole of the venue and with their vibrant green branding making sure there was no doubt on who was sponsoring the event. For those fans who didn’t fancy the walk up the hill, free branded taxis were provided to give them a head start on getting to the front of the queue. The Great Hall saw for the first time a dedicated fan activation village which connected Paddy Power, Darts and most importantly the fans, together, to give everyone attending an experience they wouldn’t forget. . For those lucky enough to have secured what was undoubtedly ‘The Hottest Ticket In Town’ it was the perfect setting for thousands of fans in fancy dress to gather for a night filled with entertainment. As the lights went down, the music began, and the crowd roared in anticipation for the start of the show.
Those incredible surroundings were the fruits of our wonderful Experiential team’s labours, who responded to Paddy Power’s creative brief to plan the design of the Complete venue, fan village and activation zones. More than 4,000 pieces of artwork were produced to dress Ally Pally, and all akyprint items have either been put into storage for next year or recycled. The entire fan village has been put into storage for next year’s championships along with as many other branding elements as possible. There were take homes for fans to enjoy too, with more than 130,000 pieces of merchandise won during the tournament.
CSM managed the incredible transformation of turning Ally Pally green, with enormous external archways and lighting installed within a 58 hour install window. The Fan Village build, took around 43 hours to install and dress in the week leading up to the event.
Around 90,000 fans visited Ally Pally over the course of the Championship, with Paddy’s Bulls-Eye challenge being the most popular activation with just under 10,000 participants, with 11 winners bagging £500 each for scoring 2 consecutive bullseyes. . Fans entering the village also contributed to over £5000 in donations to Prostate Cancer UK.
Needless to say, we were delighted and proud to play our role in bringing the tournament to life, working on behalf of the title partner Paddy Power to turn the iconic Alexandra Palace into a sea of green.
“What a World Championship this was! it had everything; excitement, drama and Paddy Power. At CSM we are really proud to have been part of this, helping Paddy Power deliver an experience like no one before. From Creative to execution we are truly grateful for our involvement, the power of collaboration when two great businesses come together in CSM and Paddy Power just shows what can be achieved.” – Paul Hicks, Director of Experiential and Events
From creative, studio, fabrication through to project management, the team did a phenomenal job on producing, delivering and managing such a headline project.
Check out this drone video for a snapshot of the work… and bring on the next Championships!
