Three sporting events to watch this week: Your handy guide to sport on television

PDC World Championship

Relatively few people watch professional darts year-round, but, once a year, for just a few weeks either side of Christmas, everyone becomes an expert. The semi-finals of the premier event in darts is on Monday, with the decider on Tuesday evening. 180! - Monday-Tuesday, Sky Sports

Sentry Tournament of Champions

Golf’s top players have made a commitment to compete against each other more often in 2023. One of the designated events is also the first one of the year - the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, Hawaii. - Thursday-Sunday, Sky Sports

The Masters

Although not a ranking event, this is one of the most prestigious tournaments in professional snooker. The 2023 event, which begins next weekend, involves the top 16 players in the world rankings, however the 2021 winner Yan Bingtao is currently suspended due to a match-fixing investigation. The only Irishman competing is Mark Allen, who has had a rollercoaster time lately - which included the Antrim man declaring bankruptcy in 2021 and winning the UK Championship in November. - Sunday, BBC

MONDAY (Jan 2nd)

• NBA - Sky Sports Mix - 1am Celtics @ Nuggets
• NFL - Sky Sports NFL - 1.20am Steelers @ Ravens
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football - 12.30pm SP: Rangers v Celtic
• SOCCER - BT Sport 3 - 2pm L1: Strasbourg v Troyes; 4pm Lille v Reims
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football - 3pm C: Norwich City v Watford
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football Red Button - 3pm C: Stoke City v Preston NE; 3pm West Brom v Reading
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Premier League & Showcase - 5.30pm PL: Brentford v Liverpool
• SOCCER - BT Sport 1 - 6pm L1: Montpellier v Marseille; 8pm Rennes v Nice
• DARTS - Sky Sports Arena, 7.30pm-11.30pm PDC World Championship Semi-finals
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football - 8pm C: QPR v Sheffield Utd

TUESDAY (Jan 3rd)

• NFL - Sky Sports NFL - 1.30am Bills @ Bengals
• CRICKET - Sky Sports Cricket from 4.50am - 2nd Test, D1 Pakistan v New Zealand
• DARTS - Sky Sports Arena, 7.30pm-11pm PDC World Championship Final
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Premier League - 7.45pm PL: Arsenal v Newcastle Utd
• SOCCER - Premier Sports 1 - 8pm PL: Man Utd v Bournemouth
• CRICKET - BT Sport 2 from 11.30pm - 3rd Test, D1 Australia v South Africa

WEDNESDAY (Jan 4th)

• CRICKET - Sky Sports Cricket from 4.50am - 2nd Test, D2 Pakistan v New Zealand
• SOCCER - BT Sport 1 - 11.30am Serie A: Salernitana v AC Milan; 1.30pm Spezia v Atalanta; 3.30pm Roma v Bologna; 5.30pm Cremonese v Juventus; 7.45pm Inter Milan v Napoli
• SOCCER - BT Sport 2 - 11.30am Serie A: Sassuolo v Sampdoria; 1.30pm Torino v Hellas Verona; 3.30pm Lecce v Lazio; 5.30pm Fiorentina v Monza; 7.45pm Udinese v Empoli
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Premier League - 8pm PL: Crystal Palace v Tottenham
• CRICKET - BT Sport 1 from 11.30pm - 3rd Test, D2 Australia v South Africa

THURSDAY (Jan 5th)

• CRICKET - Sky Sports Cricket from 4.50am - 2nd Test, D3 Pakistan v New Zealand
• GOLF - Sky Sports Golf, 7.15pm-3am Tournament of Champions
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Premier League - 8pm PL: Chelsea v Manchester City
• CRICKET - BT Sport 1 from 11.30pm - 3rd Test, D3 Australia v South Africa

FRIDAY (Jan 6th)

• NBA - Sky Sports Arena - 0.30am Celtics @ Mavericks; 3am Clippers @ Nuggets
• CRICKET - Sky Sports Cricket from 4.50am - 2nd Test, D4 Pakistan v New Zealand
• SOCCER - LaLigaTV & Premier Sports 1 - 5.30pm LL: Elche v Celta Vigo
• SOCCER – LaLigaTV - 8pm LL: Valencia v Cádiz
• GOLF - Sky Sports Golf, 7.15pm-3am Tournament of Champions
• RUGBY - Premier Sports 2 - 7.35pm URC: Dragons v Bulls
• RUGBY - TG4 & Premier Sports 1 - 7.35pm URC: Munster v Lions
• RUGBY - BT Sport 1 - 7.45pm EP: Gloucester v Saracens
• SOCCER – UTV - 8pm FA Cup: Man Utd v Everton
• SOCCER - DAZN - 8pm Cup: Châteauroux v PSG
• CRICKET - BT Sport 2 from 11.30pm - 3rd Test, D4 Australia v South Africa

SATURDAY (Jan 7th)

• CRICKET - Sky Sports Cricket from 4.50am - 2nd Test, D5 Pakistan v New Zealand
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football - 12.30pm L2: Salford v Northampton
• SOCCER - BBC 1 - 12.30pm Cup: Gillingham v Leicester
• SOCCER - BBC Red Button - 12.30pm Cup: Tottenham v Portsmouth
• HORSE RACING - UTV & Virgin Media One, 12.55pm-4pm Sandown Park
• RUGBY - Premier Sports - 1pm URC: Benetton v Ulster; 3pm Edinburgh v Zebre; 5.15pm Cardiff v Scarlets
• RUGBY - BT Sport 2 - 2pm EP: Newcastle v Leicester; 4.30pm Exeter v Northampton
• SOCCER - LaLigaTV & Premier Sports - 3.15pm LL: Villarreal v Real Madrid; 5.30pm Mallorca v Real Valladolid; 8pm Espanyol v Girona
• SOCCER - BT Sport 1 - 5pm Serie A: Juventus v Udinese; 7.45pm Monza v Inter Milan
• RUGBY - RTE 2 & Premier Sports - 5.15pm URC: Connacht v Sharks
• GOLF - Sky Sports Golf, 5.45pm-1am Tournament of Champions
• SOCCER - BBC 1 - 6pm Cup: Sheffield Wednesday v Newcastle Utd
• RUGBY - TG4 & Premier Sports - 7.35pm URC: Ospreys v Leinster
• SOCCER - ITV4 - 8pm FA Cup: Liverpool v Wolves
• NFL - Sky Sports NFL - 9.30pm Chiefs @ Raiders; 1.15am Titans @ Jaguars
• SOCCER - BBC 1, 10.40pm-0.10am Match of the Day
• NBA - Sky Sports Arena - 11pm Celtics @ Spurs
• CRICKET - BT Sport 1 from 11.30pm - 3rd Test, D5 Australia v South Africa

SUNDAY (Jan 8th)

• NBA - Sky Sports Arena - 1.30am Magic @ Warriors
• SOCCER - BT Sport 1 - 11.30am Serie A: Salernitana v Torino
• SNOOKER - BBC 2, 1pm-5.15pm The Masters
• SOCCER - LaLigaTV & Premier Sports - 1pm LL: Almería v Real Sociedad; 3.15pm Rayo Vallecano v Real Betis; 5.30pm Sevilla v Getafe
• GAA - TG4 - All-Ireland Club SFC Semi-finals - 1.30pm Kilmacud Crokes v Kerins O`Rahilly’s; 3.30pm Moycullen v Glen
• SOCCER - Sky Sports Football - 1.30pm SP: Motherwell v Hibernian; 4pm Dundee Utd v Rangers
• SOCCER – UTV - 2pm FA Cup: Cardiff v Leeds
• SOCCER - BT Sport 2 - 2pm Serie A: Lazio v Empoli; 5pm Sampdoria v Napoli
• SOCCER - BT Sport 3 - 2pm Serie A: Spezia v Lecce
• RUGBY - Premier Sports - 3pm URC: Glasgow v Stormers
• RUGBY - BT Sport 1 - 3pm EP: Harlequins v Sale
• SOCCER - BBC 1 - 4.30pm FA Cup: Man City v Chelsea
• SOCCER - BBC Red Button - 4.30pm FA Cup: Aston Villa v Stevenage
• NFL - Sky Sports NFL - 6pm Patriots @ Bills; 9.25pm Giants @ Eagles; 1.20am Lions @ Packers
• GOLF - Sky Sports Golf, 5.45pm-1am Tournament of Champions
• SOCCER - BT Sport 1 - 7.45pm Serie A: AC Milan v Roma
• SOCCER - ITV4, LaLigaTV & Premier Sports - 8pm LL: Atlético Madrid v Barcelona
• NBA Sky Sports Arena - 8.30pm Trail Blazers @ Raptors; 11pm Nets @ Heat
• SOCCER BBC 1, 10.30pm-11.30pm Match of the Day