'I'd like to see, but I don't think they'd do it' - Bobby George speaks on chances of News of the World Championship revival

Long before the glitz of Alexandra Palace or the roar of Lakeside, there was the News of the World Championship — a tournament widely regarded as the original pinnacle of competitive darts. First held in 1927, it laid the foundations for the professional game and remains one of the sport’s most storied competitions.

What began as a modest regional event quickly gained national and then international stature. In 1947, it was formalised as the first national darts championship in England, and over the following decades, its reputation soared. Long before the BDO or PDC brought the game to global television audiences, the News of the World Championship had already earned a reputation as the title to win.

Its list of champions reads like a who’s who of darts history, with legendary names such as Bobby George, who lifted the trophy twice — in 1979 and again in 1986.

But what truly set this tournament apart wasn’t just its prestige — it was its brutal format. Unlike today’s standard match structures, the News of the World Championship featured a straight knockout system, with every match played over a razor-thin best-of-three legs. There were no sets, no safety nets. One bad visit to the oche could end a player's campaign in seconds. It was high-stakes darts at its purest, and the pressure was immense.

That format, combined with the sheer difficulty of qualifying, earned the tournament a fearsome reputation. It was often described as the hardest tournament in the world to win — not least because of the thousands who entered each year, all whittled down to a single victor through county and regional stages.

By the time the curtain fell on the tournament in 1990, the News of the World had become more than a competition — it was an institution. A brief revival was attempted in the 1996/1997 season, but it failed to regain its former prominence, and the championship quietly faded into history.