DARTS fans may be aware that since the 1970s sticker albums have been all the rage. Kids would painstakingly try to complete their collection, with the usual mountain of swaps being used as leverage with others to try and get those missing stickers to finish a long and rewarding quest.
At the forefront of the sticker and trading card world then and today are Panini.
An Italian company founded in 1961 by Giuseppe Panini, the company has held licences over the years with the biggest companies and sports in the business, and they have now given darts the sticker and trading card treatment.
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We caught up with Ronald Schaeffer, Director of Online & New Media, who was present at the recent PDC World Championship, and he took us through some of the finer points of Panini, and their work in darts and sport in general:
How does a sport/activity get to be part of the Panini family of albums?
That’s a good question. Several criteria are needed for a sport to become part of the Panini family of sticker collections. A sport needs to demonstrate a strong and sustainable level of popularity. This includes a large and engaged fan base as well as consistent spectator interest.
At the same time, long-term recognisable and iconic athletes play a crucial role. From our perspective, continuity at the top level of a sport is essential. Fans need identifiable personalities who remain closely associated with the sport over time and who consistently deliver outstanding performances.
However, popularity alone is not sufficient. Panini follows a very selective and curated approach when expanding its portfolio. We focus on sports that combine emotional appeal, recognisable heroes and long-term storytelling potential.
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Many of us have the memories of trying the for ages to find the final cards/stickers – and never managing it. How has that changed?
All stickers within a collection are produced in equal quantities, which means they are evenly distributed overall. However, when collectors buy individual packs, statistical clustering naturally occurs, resulting in duplicates. This is particularly typical for children, who often purchase single packs rather than larger quantities.
That is exactly where the core idea of collecting has always come into play. For us at Panini, sticker collecting has always been about more than just completing a collection, but about collecting together, exchanging duplicates and, in many cases, even negotiating or trading stickers among peers. These shared experiences are a key part of why sticker collecting creates such lasting memories across generations.
In the earlier days, sticker albums were mainly for children, it seems now there is an adult collector market.
It is true that the collector landscape has evolved significantly and that there is now a clearly visible adult collector market for sticker albums alongside the traditional younger audience.
We actively take this into account when developing our products. For example, in Germany we introduced a premium hardback album for the PDC Darts World Championship sticker collection. This format is deliberately positioned as a higher-quality product and clearly addresses an older target group…
Have you made special collectors’ items for the darts issue/s?
Here it is important to clearly distinguish between two different product categories.
On the one hand, there is the classic Panini sticker album. In this segment, we do not create dedicated collector items….
On the other hand, the trading card segment allows us to address the collector market in a much more targeted way. In this category, we deliberately introduce premium collector elements such as authentic autograph cards, some of which are produced in very limited quantities or even as true one-of-one cards within a collection.
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This differentiation is intentional. Sticker collections are designed for a broader and more inclusive audience, whereas trading cards allow us to offer premium, exclusivity-driven collector items while maintaining the accessible nature of the sticker format.
Will it be an annual album like some football ones or a different timeline?
Yes, the intention is to establish an annual sticker album aligned with the key highlight event of the PDC calendar, the PDC Darts World Championship.
Could there be other special editions, perhaps for World Cup?
At the moment, we see additional or special editions primarily within the trading card segment rather than within sticker albums, especially for events outside the World Championship, such as the PDC World Cup.
What other sports might be in the pipeline for the Panini treatment?
Panini continuously evaluates a wide range of sports properties, and our approach is deliberately selective and closely tied to long-term strategic fit. Out of respect for our partners and the licensing process, we generally only communicate about new projects once all agreements are in place.
What is next for Panini in Darts?
Looking ahead, our focus for darts is clearly on the continued development and refinement of our trading card collections. Over the course of this year, we are planning several attractive enhancements and extensions that are designed to make the products even more attractive for collectors.
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Interview from DartsWorld 593 (New Season) 2026
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Images: Panini and dartsworldstore.com
