73-622: The World Matchplay , also known as the Betfred World Matchplay for sponsorship purposes, is a professional darts tournament and one of three legs of the Triple Crown . It is played in a legs format , and is run by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Luke Humphries is the current champion after winning the 2024 edition . The World Matchplay has been played annually since 1994 in
146-505: A 2nd round defeat against Nigel Justice was effectively the end of his career. From 1994 to 2012, matches at the World Matchplay had to be won by two clear legs. For example, the first round was usually played over the first to 10 legs, but if the score reached 9–9, play continued until either player gained a two-leg lead. Starting with the 2013 World Matchplay , if a two leg-lead hadn't been established after six extra legs, then
219-456: A High Court case against Andrew Green from Lincolnshire who had won £1.7 million in a Jackpot Game. Betfred had denied payments due to faulty software but High Court ruled against Betfred. The company are the brand owners of Thesportsman.com (The Sportsman Communications Limited), an online sports news and broadcaster established in 2017. Betfred chairman, Fred Done is a major shareholder of The Sportsman Communications Limited. Starting as
292-609: A Sky Sports subscriber. Sky extended its contract from 2016 to last through 2024; beginning in 2019, Sky became the exclusive broadcaster of all F1 races excluding the British GP which will also be broadcast on the free-to-air Channel 4 (who also hold rights for all the highlights races). On 12 August 2014, Sky launched a new channel called Sky Sports 5, which would be dedicated primarily to European football, including UEFA European Championship qualifiers, La Liga and Eredivisie . On 24 August 2016, Sky launched Sky Sports Mix,
365-607: A UHD channel for Sky Sports Main Event. In March 2023 The Sky Sports F1 UHD channel was launched in time for the start of the 2023 season. The channel is also available on Virgin Media as one channel, which usually only broadcasts when certain events, such as the Premier League, are being shown. Sky owns exclusively United Kingdom and Ireland or rights to a number of sports, most notably the ones listed below. They also transmit
438-505: A continuing basis (which may serve the same purpose as the intended Tote racing development board)." The deal gave Betfred exclusive control over the on course betting system for seven years. In 2018, the exclusive licence taken out by Betfred officially ran out. In June 2016 the Gambling Commission required Betfred to pay more than £800,000 in compensation and in contribution towards socially responsible causes as part of
511-533: A full 24-hour schedule in August 2010 to coincide with the start of the 2010–11 football season. The station was initially only available to Sky Sports subscribers, but became free to all listeners when its sister television channel was removed from Freeview. The station can also be listened to via the Sky Sports apps and third party platforms such as TuneIn Radio and The Pure Lounge. News reports were sourced from
584-562: A further 27 out of the 59 British racecourses) in July 2004. Following its high-profile collapse (and Channel 4 removing itself from the consortium) the network – now purely a joint venture between Sky plc and Arena Leisure – focuses on horse racing from the United Kingdom, Ireland, North America and Germany, showing many live races and related shows. The station is "affiliated" with various betting companies, since gamblers are generally
657-576: A jackpot of £212,000, having mistakenly written "Bailarico", a losing horse, on the betting slip, rather than "Bialco", a winner. The betting arbitrator IBAS ruled against him. Betfred is one of the largest sponsors of horse racing in the United Kingdom, with races spread across racecourses in the country, including the Midlands National run at Uttoxeter Racecourse , the Dante Stakes and Ebor Handicap both at York Racecourse , and
730-571: A large quantity of WWE and golf. Sky Sports HD4 launched on 29 April 2010. Due to an Ofcom review of premium services, Sky Sports HD1 and HD2 launched on the Virgin Media platform on 2 August 2010. This marked the first time that Sky's HD programming was shown via a rival service. Smallworld Cable added Sky Sports HD1 and HD2 in the first quarter of 2012. UPC Ireland added Sky Sports 1 HD and 2 HD along with Sky Sports News HD on 16 August 2012. Sky Sports News HD launched on 23 August 2010. It
803-826: A large range of other sports. Some of the BSB's Sports Channel programming were the FA Cup , US Open tennis, and American football from the NFL . Many of the BSB Sports Channel's rights packages, such as those for the FA Cup, Wimbledon and Test cricket, were acquired in tandem with the BBC. Sky Sports will show 128 live Premier League matches each season until 2024–25. These games are played on Friday nights, Saturday evenings and nights, Sundays and Monday nights, for which Sky broadcasts
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#1732801357755876-635: A legs only event. The length of matches for each round has changed several times over the years, as shown below. The World Matchplay has been broadcast in the UK by Sky Sports since the first tournament. There have been seven different sponsors for the World Matchplay: Betfred Betfred Group Holdings Limited is a bookmaker based in the United Kingdom , founded by Fred Done . It
949-507: A match in the World Matchplay has been achieved 35 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 24. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay is 114.99 by Phil Taylor in his Last 32 victory over Barrie Bates in 2010. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay Final is 111.23 by Phil Taylor against Adrian Lewis in 2013. From the beginning of the tournament in 1994, the World Matchplay has always been
1022-579: A new channel designed to offer a shop-window of content from the full range of Sky Sports networks to those who are not subscribers. On Sky, the channel is included as a basic service with all plans, and was also available on certain Virgin Media packages. On 18 July 2017, Sky re-aligned its sports channels, dropping the numbered services in favour of dedicated channels devoted to their core sports properties including cricket, Formula One, golf, and two football channels (with one specifically dedicated to
1095-483: A new streaming platform that will house its expanded EFL and tennis rights, among other properties; the platform will be capable of streaming up to 100 concurrent programmes. Sky also announced that one of its channels would also be rebranded under the Sky Sports+ name. The new service launched on 8 August and the channel which was rebranded was Sky Sports Arena. The Sky Sports network has twelve main channels (with
1168-481: A number of high-profile broadcasts available on its 3D television service . The first sports broadcast on Sky 3D was the Manchester United vs. Chelsea Premier League game on 3 April 2010. But as of 25 September 2014, the future of Sky 3D looked in serious doubt as Sky announced they will not be airing a Premier League game for the 2014–15 season. The channel closed on 9 June 2015. On 31 January 2010,
1241-427: A regulatory settlement. This was in response to Betfred's failure to adhere to its anti money laundering and social responsibility policies. The Gambling Commission's investigation followed a court case that resulted in one customer of Betfred being jailed for three years and four months, after admitting to stealing from his employer. A significant proportion of the stolen money was spent with Betfred. In April 2019
1314-635: A sport news website, the company stepped forward into live sport broadcasting when it signed a deal with the Rugby Football League to show a number of matches from the 2021 Challenge Cup . This was followed with a 2022 deal to show rugby league games from the Challenge Cup , League 1 , the Women's Super League and Wheelchair rugby league. Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by
1387-549: A sudden death leg is played, so sudden death would come into play in a first round match at 12–12. Over the course of the tournament's 31-year existence, there have been thirteen different winners: Phil Taylor (16), Michael van Gerwen (3), Rod Harrington (2), Gary Anderson (1), Nathan Aspinall (1), Larry Butler (1), Rob Cross (1), Peter Evison (1), Luke Humphries (1), Colin Lloyd (1), Dimitri Van den Bergh (1), James Wade (1) and Peter Wright (1). Dennis Priestley
1460-576: A thirteenth channel for BT TV ): Sky occasionally gives one of their channels a temporary rebrand to coincide with a sports event. Examples of this include: Sky Sports Racing is the only channel not wholly owned by Sky, although purchased majority control of it in 2017. The channel was founded in 2000 as At the Races by the Go Racing consortium, a partnership of Channel 4 , Sky and Arena Leisure plc (owner of Ascot Racecourse , and acting on behalf of
1533-538: A three-year period as the main sponsor of rugby league's Super League , the northern hemisphere's top-level professional rugby league with ten teams spread across England, and one in France. In October 2021, Betfred signed a renewed agreement with the rugby Super League Europe Betfred sponsored the World Snooker Championships from 2009 to 2012, before losing the sponsorship rights. In 2015, it
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#17328013577551606-653: Is in Birchwood , Warrington , and also has offices in Media City , Salford Quays , Salford . Betfred.com, the company's online gambling site, is based in Gibraltar and registered as Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited. Done Bookmakers was first established as a single shop in Ordsall , Salford in 1967. Fred Done financed the first Done Bookmakers shop with capital made from a winning bet he placed on England to win
1679-481: Is managed by Jonathan Licht. Sky Television launched on 5 February 1989 and one of its four channels was Eurosport , which it co-founded with the European Broadcasting Union . However, in 1991, Eurosport was the subject of a complaint by the competitor Screensport , who argued the effect of restricting and distorting competition in the sports market and Sky pulled out of the venture. Also in
1752-627: The 1966 World Cup . In 1997, Done Bookmakers acquired the Robert Walker chain of bookmakers, taking their total to one hundred shops. A mixture of organic and acquisition growth has resulted in Betfred being the largest independent retail bookmaker in the UK. By 2000, the total number of shops nationwide had risen to two hundred, and in 2002, Done Bookmakers opened their first shop in the Greater London area. The current name Betfred
1825-564: The 2011–12 Premier League title, only for Manchester City to beat them on goal difference. It was widely reported in April 2010 that Fred Done formed part of the "Red Knights" consortium that were looking to buy English Premier League club Manchester United from the Glazer Family . The reports proved to be incorrect, but Done remained a season ticket holder at Old Trafford. As of July 2017, Betfred operated over 1,650 shops throughout
1898-484: The BBC to share free-to-air rights to roughly half of the events and have highlights rights for the remainder. Sky subsequently announced that it would introduce a new channel dedicated specifically to its coverage, Sky Sports F1 , which would air practices, qualifying and advert-free coverage of each race; the service was made available at no extra charge to all Sky high-definition subscribers, regardless of whether they were
1971-740: The Colorado Rockies of the MLB and Loudoun United FC of the USL Championship , which includes a jersey sponsorship. On 3 June 2011, Betfred won the auction to purchase The Tote , the government-owned betting operation, in a deal worth £265m. The counter bid was lodged by the SIP (Sports Investment Partners) consortium headed by former city banker and British Airways chairman Sir Martin Broughton . Betfred pledged £155m into racing over
2044-547: The Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens , Blackpool . The first ever winner was Larry Butler , who beat Dennis Priestley 16–12, and the current holder is Luke Humphries . The 1995 World Matchplay turned out to be Jocky Wilson 's last appearance in a major televised event. Wilson had reached the quarter-finals of the inaugural tournament in 1994 and he beat Rod Harrington in the 1st round in 1995, but
2117-603: The Premier League , only for Arsenal to pip United by one point. During the 2004–05 FA Premier League season , Done lost £1m to fellow bookmaker Victor Chandler after staking that amount that Manchester United would finish higher than Chelsea . The bet was offered to other high profile bookmakers yet only Chandler took him up on the offer. Chelsea finished 18 points clear of third placed Manchester United and won their first Premiership title under José Mourinho . Betfred also paid out early on Manchester United to win
2190-624: The Premier League rights in America ), and the network later announced that it would add an hour-long simulcast of the Sky Sports News channel to its weekday morning line-up beginning 4 March. For the PGA Tour's 2019 Players Championship , Sky Sports Golf trialled similar synergies with its new sister Golf Channel . For the 2019–20 season , NBC began more extensive on-air integration of Sky Sports resources into its American coverage of
2263-496: The satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast ), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It has played a major role in the increased commercialisation of British sport since 1991, and has sometimes played a large role inducing organisational changes in the sports it broadcasts, most notably when it encouraged the First Division to break away from
World Matchplay (darts) - Misplaced Pages Continue
2336-435: The 1992/93 football season, believed to have been assisted by the promise of higher television payments, that Sky Sports became well known. By bidding £304 million, BSkyB beat ITV to acquire the exclusive live Premier League football broadcasting rights for the United Kingdom and Ireland for a five-year period. In doing so, they had taken live top-flight English league football from terrestrial and free-to-air television for
2409-615: The 2022 event that they had renewed the sponsorship deal, which will see them become sponsors of the tournament until 2025. In August, 2024, Betfred was the title sponsor of the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo . Betfredsports.com, Betfred's digital and retail presence in the USA, has official partnerships with NFL teams, the Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals , whilst they are partners of
2482-469: The Ascot Racecourse. PremPlus was a pay-per-view channel dedicated to airing live Premier League football. It was launched on 18 August 2001, showing 40 pay-per-view Premier League matches. The main presenter on PremPlus was Marcus Buckland with former Arsenal manager George Graham providing punditry. The channel was called Premiership Plus from 2001 to 2004, before being shortened to
2555-699: The Betfred Cesarewitch Handicap on the Rowley Mile course at Newmarket Racecourse . In 2005, Betfred became sponsors of the Group One Sprint Cup at Haydock Park . The race is run over the minimum distance of five furlongs. The sponsorship ended in 2016. Betfred also sponsored the most prestigious jumps race the Cheltenham Gold Cup between the years of 2012 and 2015. In October 2016, Betfred began
2628-572: The Betfred Cup. In June 2017, Betfred was confirmed as the new official shirt sponsors of Championship side Bolton Wanderers , in an agreement which will initially last for two years. In June 2019, Betfred took over the shirt sponsorship rights for RCD Mallorca for the next two years. In July 2019, Betfred announced that it had been installed as the official sponsor for the PDC 's World Matchplay tournament until 2022. Betfred announced before
2701-529: The Commission ordered Betfred and Paddy Power to terminate new betting products. This followed the introduction of reduced maximum stakes on fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTS) from £100 to £2. The Commission was "concerned that the new products undermine the changes made". The Guardian accused the companies of trying to circumvent the government's enforced FOBTs £2 reduction, with their new games. Betfred's "Virtual Cycling" product offered customers
2774-559: The Football League to form the Premier League in 1992. Sky Sports Main Event, Premier League, Football, Cricket, Golf, F1, Action and Tennis are available as a premium package on top of the basic Sky package. These services are also available as premium channels on nearly every satellite, cable and IPTV broadcasting system in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Sky Sports News , Sky Sports Racing and Sky Sports Mix are all provided as part of basic packages. The Sky Sports network
2847-512: The Premier League), and three channels dedicated to general sports coverage. In addition, Sky announced that it would revise the pricing structure of the channels to make them more attractive to viewers; Sky customers can purchase up to three of the channels on an a la carte basis, or the entire bundle. Sky Sports Mix continued to air selected programming from across the channels as part of Sky's basic service. On Sky's Now TV service,
2920-526: The Premier League, including adding Sky's studio programmes to its "Premier League Pass" subscription service, adoption of on-air presentation reminiscent of Sky, and originating coverage from Sky's studio during the opening weekend. In May 2023, Sky renewed its rights to the EFL through 2028–29 for £935 million, announcing that it planned to televise over a thousand matches per-season via linear television and streaming. In May 2024, Sky announced "Sky Sports+",
2993-630: The Sky Sports News newsroom, Sky News Radio and information was shared with SkySports.com, based in the same office. The station's managing editor was Mark Chesworth. The station closed in September 2014. Sky Sports Main Event HD launched on 22 May 2006 as Sky Sports HD, and airs live all sports screened in HD like cricket , Premier League and English Football League as well as English Premiership , Super League Rugby and among others. The 2008 Ryder Cup
World Matchplay (darts) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3066-479: The Sports Channel). The channel was initially encrypted . It was broadcast free-to-view but an analogue VideoCrypt decoder was required to watch the channel. Since VideoCrypt decoders were only officially available within the United Kingdom, this measure was intended to prevent viewing of the service outside the United Kingdom and Ireland. However, it was following the formation of the Premier League for
3139-469: The United Kingdom, after the purchase of 322 shops due to the merger between fellow bookmakers Ladbrokes and Coral in October 2016. Betfred also operates shops on fifty one racecourses around the country, including Newmarket , Epsom and Cheltenham . In August 2017, Betfred appointed former Nottingham Forest and England footballer Stuart Pearce as its brand ambassador. The company believed Pearce to be
3212-573: The United Kingdom. Betfred's five-hundredth shop opened in Cardiff in 2005. In 2013, the company established Betfred TV, an in-house channel that is available in all shops both on the high street and on the racecourse. This was the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. Fred Done was the first bookmaker to pay out early (i.e., before the result was guaranteed), when in March 1998 it paid out to gamblers who had bet that Manchester United F.C. would win
3285-580: The West Ham United v Stoke City Premier League game on 31 August 2013 as an internal production test for broadcasting 4K/Ultra HD picture. In the "Sky Views Blog", Barney Francis as the managing director stated that, although it was only viewed internally, the test has been key in helping Sky evaluate whether it will start broadcasting in 4K: We saw enough in this test event to know that live sport in UHD has real potential. The broadcast also demonstrated
3358-505: The World Matchplay. The first one was in 2002, when Phil Taylor hit the first live 9-darter in UK television history. An average over 100 in a match in the PDC World Matchplay has been achieved 142 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 62. In 2010 , Phil Taylor became the first player to average over 100 in all five rounds of the tournament. He repeated this feat in 2011 and 2013 . An average of over 105 in
3431-477: The capability of our satellite platform, which is ideally placed to continue supporting high-bandwidth video. That said, we've still much more to learn, particularly about how to make full use of UHD from a live production perspective. Sky later tested 4K by broadcasting a whole week of Ryder Cup in 4K format. It was later reported that Sky would launch their own 4K set top box to broadcast sporting events in mid-end of 2015. On 27 July 2022, Sky Sports launched
3504-470: The chance to wager up to £500 per stake. Both Paddy Power and Betfred withdrew their games. The Gambling Commission said it was investigating the matter and that both bookmakers could "still face regulatory action", as it investigated "key senior staff at bookmakers who are responsible for bringing those products to market". In October 2019 the Commission ordered Petfre, Betfred's parent, to pay £322,000 for money laundering failures. An investigation revealed
3577-524: The dedicated programmes Friday Night Football (FNF), Saturday Night Football (SNF), Super Sunday and Monday Night Football (MNF). Games that Sky Sports broadcast outside these time slots have the programme title, Premier League Live . David Jones is the presenter of Super Sunday and Monday Night Football and Kelly Cates is the presenter of Friday Night Football and Saturday Night Football . Both presenters take it in turns to present Premier League Live . The later (16:30) Super Sunday game,
3650-477: The digital platform, allowing viewers to watch matches with access to additional on-screen statistics, and a choice of alternate camera angles and replays. Sky also expected to extend the interactive services to other sports for the following year. On 25 January 2011, Sky Sports' Premier League football coverage was at the centre of controversy when footage emerged of long serving presenters Andy Gray and Richard Keys making comments perceived as sexist where Gray
3723-420: The entire Sky Sports service continues to be available through the timed pass system. The availability and packaging of the new service varies on other providers. The American NBC Sports division became a sibling of Sky Sports following Comcast 's acquisition of Sky plc and on 29 January 2019, Sky and sister American pay television network NBCSN partnered on coverage of the transfer deadline ( NBC holds
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#17328013577553796-499: The epitome of Betfred: uncomplicated. In September 2017, Betfred celebrated their 50th year of business. A documentary film about the history of the company was released on the official channel of Betfred on YouTube . In July 2018, Betfred won a court case against HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The ruling states that Betfred overpaid Value-Added Tax (VAT), and could see a £100 million refund. In November 2018, punter David Smith took Betfred to court after he claimed to have won
3869-410: The first time. 124 Premier League matches were broadcast in the 2016–17 season along with every race, qualifying session and practice in the 2017 Formula One season and England cricket's Test match series against South Africa in summer 2017 . Customers need to be Sky Q 2TB multiscreen customers who subscribe to Sky Sports pack in order to receive UHD broadcasts. It was widely reported that Sky used
3942-417: The first time. At this point, from 1 September 1992, Sky Sports became a monthly subscription channel and was sold either on a standalone basis, or at a reduced price if taken with Sky's movie channels. On 19 August 1994, a secondary channel called Sky Sports 2 was launched, although it initially only aired at weekends. On 1 November 1995, Sky launched a classic sports service called Sky Sports Gold, however it
4015-425: The later PremPlus for the beginning of the 2004–05 season. PremPlus closed down after the last match of the 2006–07 season after Setanta Sports obtained a third of the Premier League rights for 2007–10. This left Sky with only 92 live matches, meaning a pay-per-view service was unsustainable. An internet television service named Now TV was launched in 2012, offering a non-contract subscription to Sky Sports thus making
4088-517: The launch of the Sky Digital satellite platform on 1 October 1998, Sky Sports launched Sky Sports News , a channel carrying rolling sports news coverage, followed by Sky Sports Xtra (later branded as Sky Sports 4 since 2010, then Sky Sports Golf since 2017) in August 1999. During a Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester United on 22 August 1999, Sky Sports launched an interactive television service known as Sky Sports Active via
4161-463: The match between Arsenal and Manchester United was shown in 3D in around 30 pubs around the United Kingdom. The special glasses were seen being tried by Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger , and the commentators and the studio presenters mentioned of this being a world premiere live sports 3D presentation several times. On 13 August 2016, selected Sky Sports events became available to watch in UHD for
4234-556: The next seven years, as well as creating the Tote Racing Development Board, giving greater say to industry figures. In September 2016, according to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport "In terms of the Tote Racing Development Board, I can confirm that as a stand alone concept it has not been set up to date. Betfred has confirmed that Totepool work with race course owners and management on
4307-509: The operator had failed to carry out adequate "source of funds" checks on a customer who deposited £210,000, and lost £140,000, of stolen money over one twelve-day period in November 2017. The Commission said that one customer who was able to deposit and lose such significant amounts in such a short period of time clearly indicated failings in the effectiveness of Petfre's anti money laundering policies and procedures. In April 2021, Betfred lost
4380-538: The same year, it was sold to the TF1 Group and merged with Screensport two years later. British Satellite Broadcasting operated The Sports Channel , which launched on 27 March 1990. It broadcast part-time hours, especially during the week, and it therefore timeshared with The Computer Channel , which broadcast in the early mornings when it was off-air. That same year (2 November), BSB merged with Sky Television to form British Sky Broadcasting . The Sports Channel
4453-592: The service a part spiritual successor to PremPlus. Sky Sports News Radio was a British online radio station broadcasting sports news, results and information 24 hours a day. It was a sister service to the television channel Sky Sports News HQ. The station was launched in June 2010 and broadcasts online and via digital platforms from the Teamtalk studios in Leeds . It originally broadcast from 8.00am to 6.00pm, expanding to
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#17328013577554526-670: The sport's main audience, and its pictures, provided by satellite link provider SIS , are also commercially distributed to betting shops across the country. On 1 January 2019, At the Races relaunched as Sky Sports Racing ; the relaunch includes wider availability and heavier integration with the remaining Sky Sports channels, the relocation of production facilities to Sky Campus in Isleworth from their former base at SIS's facilities in Milton Keynes , and availability in high-definition. The network also acquired rights to fixtures from
4599-528: The start of the 2007 season in February 2007. Super Bowl XLI marked the first NFL broadcast in HD in the UK; additional NFL games in HD have since been phased in. Monday Night Football , Thursday Night Football , Thanksgiving Day games and the NFL Playoffs were shown in HD from 2008. Sky Sports HD3 launched on 17 March 2008, to coincide with WWE 's first UK HD broadcast. The channel broadcast
4672-574: Was also rebranded to ' Sky Sports Ryder Cup HD ' in the same move used for the standard channel on 18 September 2014 until 2 October 2014. Sky Sports 3 HD, Sky Sports 4 HD and Sky Sports F1 HD launched on Virgin Media on 15 July 2014. Sky Sports 5 HD launched on 12 August 2014 as well as being added on Virgin Media. Sky Sports 3, 4 and 5 HD launched on Virgin Media Ireland on 15 October 2014. On 1 January 2015, Sky Sports News HQ HD, along with Sky News HD were added on Virgin. Sky Sports has made
4745-672: Was also runner-up for three consecutive years. From 2018 onwards, the World Matchplay champion will receive the Phil Taylor Trophy, as was announced by the PDC following the retirement of the sixteen-time winner of the tournament. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom , the 2020 World Matchplay was held at the Marshall Arena , Milton Keynes , behind closed doors. Nine nine-dart finishes have been thrown at
4818-544: Was also screened in HD. In July 2006, Sky Sports HD2 launched on Sky channel 409, at the same time, the original HD channel was renamed Sky Sports HD1 and moved to channel 408, with Sky Sports News switching to channel 405. There was also a HD version of PremPlus, called PremPlus HD , which broadcast on Sky channel 483 until the football season ended. It was briefly branded Sky Sports HDX and used to broadcast other Sky Sports content in HD, before it ceased broadcasting. HD broadcasts of rugby league's Super League began from
4891-424: Was announced that Betfred were to become the sponsors of the tournament once again, and increase the winner's prize money to £375,000. Betfred was the official betting partner of Manchester United from 2006 to 2013. This partnership was renewed ahead of the 2022/2023 football season In May 2016, it was announced that Betfred would take over sponsorship of the Scottish League Cup for three years, rebranding it
4964-407: Was ceased broadcasting after only a year on the air. On 16 August 1996, Sky launched Sky Sports 3, and the original channel was renamed to Sky Sports 1. This meant that Sky could accommodate a substantial new set of rights that it had recent acquired, which included the English Football League , the League Cup and Scottish football. On 1 September 1997, Sky Sports 2 became a full-time service. With
5037-408: Was first established as a single betting shop in Ordsall , Salford , in 1967. Its turnover in 2004 was reported to be more than £3.5 billion, having risen from £550 million in 2003 and has continued to grow to over £10 billion in 2018-2019. Following a drop in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the Covid pandemic, published turnover for the year to September 2022 was £8.8 billion. It has its head office
5110-473: Was first used in 2004. In 2004, Betfred also launched their digital platform Betfred.com and offer sports betting, online casino, online games, bingo, lotto, online poker and virtual sports as well as pool betting. In November 2004, a Betfred customer became the first betting shop millionaire; a customer known only as Ken selected six winners on the totescoop6 and pocketed £1,132,657 in a Salford shop. Betfred's retail expansion continued with shops opening around
5183-466: Was rebranded as Sky Sports News HQ HD on 12 August 2014 along with the standard channel. On 1 March 2012, the HD channels were given a minor rebrand, with the 'HD' moving to the end of the channel names, for example Sky Sports 1 HD instead of Sky Sports HD1. Sky Sports F1 HD launched on 9 March 2012. Sky Sports 2 HD was also rebranded to ' Sky Sports Ashes HD ' in the same move used for the standard channel on 30 June until 31 August 2013. Sky Sports 4 HD
5256-461: Was renamed Sky Sports on 20 April 1991 and began broadcasting to Sky viewers via the newly launched Astra 1B satellite on that date. It continued to transmit on BSB's Marcopolo satellite . The channel was sold as one of the major draws of the Sky system and initially aired sports such as rugby and golf before acquiring rights to German and Italian league football (both previously carried over from
5329-429: Was sacked over the comments, and fellow reporter Andy Burton was suspended by Sky due to his involvement in the sexist comments made about a female assistant referee Sian Massey , which also involved Gray and Keys. However, unlike Gray and Keys, Burton later returned to his regular duties at Sky. On 29 July 2011, it was announced that Sky Sports had acquired rights to Formula One racing from 2012 through 2018, with
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