From 180s to 170,000 health checks: Turning sport into life-saving action

The Professional Dart Corporation's (PDC) World Championship of Darts has become more than an opportunity to entertain - it is now a powerful platform to inform.

With thousands of fancy-dressed fans lining the Alexandra Palace, with millions more watching from home, the PDC’s World Championship of Darts has become more than an opportunity to entertain.

It's now a moment of attention at scale; the kind of moment that can do good, if sponsors think creatively.

That’s the thinking behind Paddy Power’s Even Bigger 180, now in its third year supporting Prostate Cancer UK at the biggest event in the growing sport of darts. And it matters - prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, yet it has historically been under diagnosed given the lack of symptoms and a broader reluctance from men to get checked.

Fortunately, aligned with a wider public awareness campaign across the UK, the results of the latest Paddy Power sponsorship - which spanned its presence at the 'Ally Pally' as well as across its digital channels and advertising assets - were the biggest yet.

The campaign raised a record £1.127 million for Prostate Cancer UK, taking the three-year total to more than £3.27 million.

But the most important number goes beyond fundraising. During the tournament, 170,000 men took 30 seconds to complete Prostate Cancer UK’s online risk checker, helping them understand their risk and what to do next. This drove a record number of prostate cancer diagnoses as a result of similar, coordinated campaigns across the UK.

A simple idea that scales

The Even Bigger 180 model was straightforward, and that’s part of why it worked so well. Paddy Power pledged £1,000 for every maximum score (180) hit during the championship, turning key moments at the oche into momentum toward an important cause.

This year, that meant a record 1,127 maximums, generating £1,127,000 for Prostate Cancer UK from 180s alone. It’s a campaign built into the rhythm of the sport. Even Bigger 180’s powerful ambassador Sir Chris Hoy – the six-time Olympic medalist that was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer in 2023 - described the total raised as “mind blowing”, adding that the funds will “make a tangible difference in the fight against prostate cancer and help countless men and their families across the UK.”

"It’s been a tournament to remember, with some simply staggering scoring helping us raise an unbelievable sum – one 180 at a time – that will help change the game for men.”

- Laura Kerby, Chief Executive of Prostate Cancer UK

That total was boosted by Darts of Destiny, a public fundraising initiative that invited fans across the UK and Ireland to donate for the chance to step onto the 'Ally Pally' stage and throw nine darts for £180,000 before the final. While the top prize went unclaimed, the initiative still raised an additional £123,000.

A nudge with real-world impact

Early detection improves outcomes, but too many men still don’t know their risk or the signs. That’s what makes the scale of action this year so significant. During the tournament, around 113,000 men were identified as being at higher risk after completing the risk checker; people who now have information they did not have before, and a clearer next step.

One of the most powerful reminders of the campaign’s impact came from the President of the PDC and legendary sports promoter, Barry Hearn, who shared that the campaign encouraged him to get checked. He later underwent a prostate cancer operation which he described as “100% successful.” He called it “creative sponsorship,” and said it was “the nudge all men need.”

Leveraging the focus on the World Championships alongside Paddy Power’s ability for instinctive and impactful campaigns, the tournament also presented a natural opportunity to raise awareness for a separate health issue. Following his quarter-final success, Ryan Searle spoke candidly to the media about the visual challenges he faces at the oche due to Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy (ADOA) and how he’s determined to raise both funds and awareness of the condition.

In support, Paddy Power decided to mark his semi-final appearance by blurring its logo and the writing on its signature ‘180 boards’ held aloft by fans, along with tables on the stage and digital signage around the 'Ally Pally' in an effort to demonstrate how impressive Ryan’s success was given his visual impairment.

Doing more with the moments that matter

At Flutter, our Do More strategy is rooted in a simple idea: use the scale of our brands and platforms to support the communities we serve, in ways that create real outcomes. Even Bigger 180 is a strong example of that approach, alongside Sky Bet’s work with the British Heart Foundation and Betfair with the Injured Jockeys Fund. With the right partnerships and the right creative, sponsorship can become something more than visibility. It can help fund life-changing research, spark conversations that might not happen otherwise, and motivate people to take a step that could save their life.

And the impact continues beyond the tournament. To mark the unprecedented number of maximums this year, 1,127 dartboards are being made available at selected Paddy Power shops in exchange for a donation to the Darts of Destiny JustGiving page.

Because for causes like this, the best moments shouldn’t end when the final dart is thrown.