Darts stars are reportedly worried of playing without alcohol.
The sport has seen an astonishing rise in viewing figures, prize money and participation rates over the past couple of years, with sponsors eager to capitalise on the clean cut new generation of players. It's a complete far cry from the days when Andy Fordham drank 20 beers before winning the World Championship.
Although the relationship between darts and alcohol has changed in recent times, there is still concerns about playing the sport while sober and not under the influence of booze. According to The Sunday Times, one player was placed in the recovery position outside a PDC Pro Tour venue in Wigan.
Another player was also seen passed out in his chair in the practice room at a different event after drinking around ten pints, it has been claimed. A number of professional darts players fear that they cannot play well without alcohol, pinpointing performance anxiety as the main reason why.
"In the darts world today, you won't find any top-level players who benefit from alcohol. Other players who used to play darts are not significant.
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"[Alcohol] has nothing to do with today's sport, but darts still has to do with the cliché of a pub sport where men with big beer bellies throw at a board," Matt Porter, the PDC chief executive, told Darts News in December.
The Professional Darts Players Association - which work in partnership with the PDC - informed players that stricter sanctions were going to be imposed after an increase in the number of instances where stars were found to have brought alcohol into venues, disguised in water bottles and containers.
Luke Littler, who still can't legally drink, is said to be one of the few professionals known to play sober (George Wood/Getty Images)If caught, fines start at £250 and rise to around £1000, with a fourth breach resulting in a year suspension from the sport. It's alleged that the Darts Regulation Authority issued 92 sanctions between 2020 to 2023, most of which cite to inappropriate, unprofessional or aggressive behaviour.
It has also been claimed that it is normal for some players to get to venues between two and four hours early so they can drink to the required level before their opening matches. The amount of alcohol drunk does vary from person to person, with some elite players stricter than others.
Drinking between three to five pints is relatively common and, at televised events, players have been known to drink a shot during breaks between matches. "I don’t think it’s right that they provide an environment for players to drink in the way they do," an insider told The Times.
"I know one player who has to drink ten pints before he plays, probably because it takes so much for them now to feel the influence. A lot of them are literally petrified by the thought of playing sober. It’s a psychological thing. They feel they need it to perform."
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