Emma Paton has been a regular fixture on screens throughout the PDC World Championship and is now a much-loved figure amongst darts fans
Chris Burns Senior Sports Writer
09:00, 01 Jan 2026
Emma Paton is a fan favourite thanks to her coverage of the darts(Image: missemmapaton)
Sky Sports’ darts presenter Emma Paton once divulged that she’s a Manchester United fan.
Paton has been a constant fixture on UK screens for the duration of the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace. In recent years, the 31-year-old has also become the broadcaster’s primary presenter for darts events such as the Premier League and the World Matchplay.
It could be argued that Paton is one of the reasons for darts’ burgeoning popularity in recent years due to her personable manner and extensive knowledge while hosting. It was in May 2023, however, that the popular anchor revealed her allegiance to the Red Devils during a trip to the Women’s FA Cup final between United and Chelsea.
Emma Paton revealed her support for Man Utd on social media(Image: Twitter/MissEmmaPaton)
Ahead of the game Paton posted a selfie of herself walking along Wembley Way. Wearing a United shirt, she captioned the post: “Wembley bound! Come on @ManUtdWomen!!”
While Paton has charmed viewers with her cool under pressure demeanour, not many fans will know that her ability to perform on the biggest stage is in large part due to her past.
Paton was originally an Olympic-standard athlete over 400 metres. She trained with former Commonwealth Games heptathlon champion Kelly Sotherton before turning to sports journalism.
Emma Paton is a popular figure on Sky Sports(Image: missemmapaton/Instagram)
“Some of the best years of my life were spent training at Loughborough University and mixing with arguably the best 400-metre runners in the country,” she once said of her athletic history.
On her job at Sky, she added: “I’ve been at Sky for 12 years, working longer behind the camera than in front of it, seven years on the production team at Good Morning Sports Fans (Sky Sports News’ breakfast show) getting up at 3am to edit interviews, prepare scripts and design graphics.”
Explaining how she made the jump to presenting and ultimately succeeding Sky Sports icon Dave Clark, she said: “My dream was to be a Sky Sports presenter, not to be sat in newsroom cutting Jose Mourinho press conferences into 20-second clips, and I spent years literally knocking on doors to see if there was an opportunity.
Paton at the US Open in 2023(Image: missemmapaton)
“I owe a lot of what I do now to a guy called Rory Hopkins, who produced the darts for decades on Sky. When Dave Clark, who presented our coverage so brilliantly for so long, decided to take a step back from doing it, I remember getting an email from Rory which simply said, ‘Do you like darts?’
“And I thought, ‘Darts? Yeah, OK… it’s a sport I hadn’t worked in before and I’ve followed a legend, which is what Clarky is, and I was diving into a whole new environment.”
While she had lofty shoes to fill when Clark retired from Sky in 2020, Paton also had to follow in the footsteps of Laura Woods, another hugely beloved sports presenter.
Emma Paton took over presenting from Dave Clark and Laura Woods(Image: Eleanor Hoad/Every Second Media/REX/Shutterstock)
“I’ve always been a darts fan but nothing like I am now, doing every major event for Sky,” Paton said prior to the 2024 World Championship.
Beyond darts, she continues to venture into other areas of media work. Just last summer, she teamed up with Sky for their coverage of the US Open tennis, interviewing high-profile stars at the Grand Slam event in New York City.
Football fans will also recognise her for her coverage of transfer news on Sky Sports, a role that earned her a nomination for a sports industry award.
