Target Darts has announced a three-year exclusive partnership with Powerleague, the UK’s leading small sided football and multi sport provider, which will see Target Dartzone installed across 20 venues, creating one of the UK’s largest connected grassroots darts networks.
The partnership will see 41 Dartzones installed across Powerleague venues in 2026, combining Target Darts’ market-leading products and technology with Powerleague’s national venue network, to deliver fun and entertaining darts experiences for players of all ages and abilities.
Thousands of small sided footballers across the country every week will now have the chance to step into the shoes of world number one Luke Littler, Beau Greaves and Nathan Aspinall, who are all Target managed athletes, by throwing real darts in the same Dartzone set up’s that the world’s best players are playing and practicing on, day in, day out.
The mutually beneficial partnership forms part of Target Darts’ wider ambition to grow participation in the sport by making darts more accessible, social and engaging and helping build new darts communities. For Powerleague, it’s part of the ongoing diversification strategy, providing existing members the opportunity to partake in a wider range of sports and attracting new people from the local community. The venture will be wholly complimentary to the existing facilities.
Using Target’s patented auto-scoring system, OMNI, which calculates scores as your darts land , together with Target Arcade and DartCounter, players can throw real darts at a real dartboard, while enjoying classic darts, interactive games and experiences that have never previously existed within the sport.
James Tattersall, CEO of Target Darts, said: “Darts is enjoying significant growth at the moment, and we’re creating more opportunities for people to discover and enjoy the sport. Our partnership with Powerleague allows us to bring modern, connected darts experiences into communities across the UK at scale.”
He added: “We are adding another competitive and entertaining dimension to the small-sided football experience, creating new spaces where players can compete against each other on and off the pitch.”
John Gillespie, CEO of Powerleague, said: “We’re always looking at ways that we can enhance the experience and give more opportunities to our Powerleague community, and our partnership with Target Darts is our next step in this. As with small-sided football, padel and the other sports we currently offer, darts is such a great activity for bringing people together in a fun and sociable environment, and that’s across different ages and abilities. And in all of this, if it means that we can support in finding the next generation of talent that have been inspired by the likes of Luke Littler, it really is a win-win.”
The partnership will also see Powerleague become an official venue partner for Target Darts’ youth development programmes, supporting the company’s commitment to growing grassroots participation and creating pathways for the next generation of players.
The launch follows Target Darts’ continued investment in technology, venues, grassroots development and player pathways as part of its ambition to inspire millions more people to play darts by 2030.
The first Dartzone in Powerleague Birmingham will open from 24 August, with further rollout planned across 2026.
