Staging the spectacle: the panoptic–synoptic dynamics of prosumer fandom in live PDC darts

Rationale/Purpose
This article examines how the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) transformed live darts into a highly mediated, carnivalesque spectacle by mobilising the participatory energy of prosumer fans. It explores how surveillance, performance, and control intersect within a distinctive sport entertainment ecosystem.

Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on multi-season qualitative fieldwork across televised PDC tournaments, the study combines participant observation, visual methods, informal conversations, and semi-structured interviews with fans, players, and organisational staff. Data were analysed using inductive, reflexive thematic analysis to examine fan behaviour, broadcast mediation, and event governance.

Findings
The PDC’s audience model is organised through a dyadic relationship between panoptic regulation and synoptic visibility. Venue protocols, security staff, and event management monitor and discipline conduct, while fans are encouraged to perform for cameras through costumes, chants, signs, and crowd interaction. Synoptic visibility operates as a commercial governance device: the promise of mediated recognition recruits fans into self-regulation to remain camera-eligible. The outcome is managed exuberance in which participation is simultaneously rewarded and constrained.

Research Contribution
The article advances sport management and leisure research by theorising prosumer fandom as a mutually reinforcing system of visibility and control, and by offering insight into designing ethical, participatory event atmospheres.