Luke Littler speaks out on 'cheating' claims during lockdown darts competitions

Luke Littler has opened up about being accused of 'cheating' during online darts competitions in lockdown.

The 17 year old darts player and Manchester United fan became famous after reaching the World Darts Championship final in January, but he first got noticed during the Covid-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, Littler was not well-known in the darts world, even though he had won youth competitions including the England Youth Grand Prix and the Isle of Man Masters.

But when lockdown happened in 2020, he started to shine in the big games for grown-ups. Because he was so young, some people also thought he was cheating when playing the online games.

READ MORE: Manchester United fan Luke Littler drops retirement hint as he eyes up 10-year career

READ MORE: Luke Littler and Peter Wright's awkward lift exchange after Premier League Darts clash

Stuck at home, the teenager used a phone app called Scolia to keep track of his practice scores. When he played in online tournaments, that's when the cheating talk started. He told with The Times: "I was doing four, five hours a day, every day. I had nothing else to do."

"I started getting into different computer bots. The fella that organised competitions locally would do them online at weekends. You paid your tenner to enter. I won, and a few people said I was cheating."

He also mentioned that when real-life competitions started again, people wanted him to 'prove it'. And prove it he did. In 2021, Littler won his first big title for adults at the Irish Open. He said: "I was getting better and better and then we came out and it was back to normal."

"All of the people, out from their kitchens and bedrooms, into the pub and the darting world. And I proved it, didn't I? I don't get