Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 March 2026
147. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether he is aware of issues with the lack of a national governing body for darts; and the actions he has taken to resolve this. [16725/26]
View answerSport Ireland, which is funded by this Department, is the statutory body with responsibility for the development of sport, increasing participation at all levels and raising standards, including the allocation of funding under its various programmes. Sport Ireland does not provide direct funding for clubs or individuals but channels the funding through the relevant National Governing Body (NGB).
Sport Ireland operates a formal recognition process for organisations wishing to become eligible for support as NGBs. Its recognition criteria set out the minimum requirements for NGB recognition and the additional criteria that may need to be met to receive financial investment from Sport Ireland. There is no alternative mechanism for organisations to seek NGB recognition or support from Sport Ireland outside of this process.
In recent years, Sport Ireland has received correspondence from a NGB for darts regarding its NGB recognition process. Sport Ireland has outlined the formal recognition process in place to the organisation and met with it in September 2024 to further discuss the process. Sport Ireland most recently engaged with the organisation in December 2025 in relation to this formal recognition process. To date the organisation has not made a formal application to Sport Ireland for NGB recognition.
In the absence of a Sport Ireland-recognised NGB for darts, there is at present no mechanism by which darts organisations, clubs or players can secure funding from Sport Ireland. I would therefore encourage the organisation in question to continue its engagement with Sport Ireland and, ultimately, to make a formal application for recognition.
