McCoy’s crisps aims to boost male engagement with darts sponsorship

McCoy’s is to become the title sponsor of the Premier League of Darts, the crisp brand’s first ever event sponsorship deal.

McCoys Steak Crisps

The deal, brokered by MEC Access, sees McCoy’s become the official snack of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).

McCoy’s will also be a partner sponsor for all other PDC events, including the Grand Slam of Darts and the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship, which takes place at London’s Alexandra Palace.

The Premier League of Darts, currently sponsored by 888.com, takes place between the world’s top eight players over 15 weeks in the UK and culminates in a final at the O2 Arena, London.

The crisp brand will promote its darts sponsorship with limited edition flavours, on-pack promotions, social media and promotional activity at the events in a bid to engage its core audience of young men.

Darts has grown in popularity in recent years, with its image reinvented from a pub game to a sporting spectacle watched by thousands of fans in arenas and via broadcast on Sky Sports, under the leadership of PDC chairman Barry Hearn, who also chairs Leyton Orient Football Club.

Hearn said in January that ticket sales for the World Championship were up 25% year on year and sales for the Premier League reached £1m for the first time.

He says: “It’s so rare to find brand partners that fit so well with the property they’re sponsoring, but with McCoy’s there is an instant link that darts fans will love and appreciate.”

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