‘Darts of Destiny’ donations pass £100k as the Paddy Power World Darts Championship gets underway

Fans from all over the world are gathering to see top players compete for the sport's biggest prize, the iconic Sid Waddell Trophy, along with the highly sought-after Ballon d’Art – on offer for the player who fires the most maximums.

Paddy Power are back as sponsors of the tournament for a third year, and we’re delighted to once again be the official charity partner.

In their first two years of sponsorship, Paddy Power raised more than £2 million to support our work – and the 2025/26 tournament promises to be the biggest yet as the Even Bigger 180 campaign gets under way.

For every 180 scored at this year’s tournament, Paddy Power will donate £1,000 – plus an incredible nine-dart bonus for every perfect leg at the tournament. A cash prize of £180,000 will be split evenly between us, the player, and one lucky fan in the crowd at Ally Pally.

One lucky darts fan could win £180,000 at this year’s tournament

This time around, Paddy Power are also giving one lucky darts fan the chance to win £180,000 as part of their new 'Darts of Destiny' challenge.

The ‘Darts of Destiny’ prize draw will give one member of the public the chance to throw nine darts at the World Darts Championship final on Saturday 3 January 2026. If they throw 180 points or more in nine darts, they’ll win a huge £180,000 prize from Paddy Power.

To enter, darts fans are being encouraged to make a donation to support our work via Paddy Power’s Darts of Destiny Just Giving page by Wednesday 31 December 2025.

Enter the Darts of Destiny prize draw

So far, there have been over 26,000 entries to the Darts of Destiny prize draw, raising over £105,000. These much-needed donations will help fund groundbreaking research, like our TRANSFORM trial – a once-in-a-generation study that aims to find the best way to screen men for prostate cancer and save thousands of lives every year.

Former champion Rob Cross’ special connection to our cause

Today, one fan will be cheering on a former champion with whom he has a very special connection.

Minibus driver Colin Wilde, 59, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in October 2024. Just days after having surgery to remove his prostate, he watched his wife’s cousin, professional darts player Rob Cross, on the Ally Pally oche, sporting a badge he’d sent him as a Christmas gift.

Rob, who lifted the Sid Waddell Trophy to become World Champion in 2018, was instrumental in Colin’s return to health, offering huge support during what was a bumpy journey.

Colin’s diagnosis came after a PSA blood test

Colin’s story actually started at the beginning of 2022, just after Peter Wright had been crowned World Darts Champion.

After noticing he was going to the toilet more often during the night, Colin spoke to his GP and was diagnosed with an enlarged prostate. But, following a PSA blood test in September 2024, further tests led to a diagnosis of prostate cancer a month later.

Colin had his prostate removed in December 2024. However, there were complications.

Colin explained: “The surgeon found that, because it grown so big, my prostate gland was impacting and growing into my bladder. This meant cutting away part of my bladder whilst the prostate was removed and then sewing the bladder back together, losing around 20% of its mass. This left me with a bladder drain on the side of my abdomen as well as a catheter.

“After four bladder infections in three months and a catheter removed and refitted twice, I was still not peeing freely. I had a cystoscopy, which showed that scar tissue around my bladder was closing up my urethra, so it was decided I'd need another surgery to open it up.”

Colin underwent a second surgery in May of this year. This was successful, but left Colin having to self-catheterise every two weeks to ensure his urethra didn’t close up again. He continues to do this fortnightly, and will do for the foreseeable future.

“I’d say it’s a case of so far, so good, despite not being much fun and a little painful to say the least,” he said.

High profile support for Colin's recovery

Colin’s return to health has certainly been a rocky road at times, but he’s had some high-profile support along the way.

He explained: “I sent Rob and his family Christmas cards that included the Prostate Cancer UK ‘Man of Men’ badges, and asked if he would wear it on his shirt during the tournament. I was very happy to see him wearing one of the badges when he came on stage. Then I realised all the players were wearing them, which was fantastic to see.

“I was in touch with Rob’s Mum, Sally, and she said how worried he’d been. That was a very emotional moment for me and made me feel really cared for.”

Colin added: “As someone affected by this disease, I’m really proud to see Rob and all those high-profile players supporting and raising funds every time they hit a 180. £2 million raised in the last two years has been phenomenal, so a huge thanks to Paddy Power and the players. Here’s to even more this year.”

Rob said: “It’s daunting, what Colin’s been going through, and of course you’re always affected when you’re close to someone. Thankfully, it worked out really well and he found it early.

“Putting that badge on was an amazing thing for me. What Paddy Power do for the charity is absolutely fantastic.

“I'm very proud, like all the other players, to be part of that and we get to contribute the 180s and have the money come through. Having that awareness and that reach is so important. It really is life changing.”

Right now, the biggest lifesaver is making sure every man knows his risk of prostate cancer. Because the earlier you find it, the easier it is to treat. That’s why we’re getting our message out to men right across the country. And urging darts fans in all corners of the UK to check their risk using our 30-second online risk checker.

Check your prostate cancer risk