From bottle tops
to bottling tops

A league is born

Fresh from the World Series of Darts in Amsterdam, a few hungover lads returned home with a dream: to create the ultimate social darts league.

The idea was simple. Each player would take their turn hosting, everyone would play everyone, and eventually it would all culminate in a finals night to crown a champion.

From those remarkably well-considered discussions in Amsterdam, the Selby Premier League was born.

Like all great sporting institutions, it began with ambition, friendship and an entirely sensible amount of lager.

The dream becomes reality

One month later, the talking stopped and the darts began. Preparations were made for the first ever SPL night.

There was no technology, a shortage of dartboards and an even greater shortage of talent.

The sophisticated draw system consisted of bottle tops and a spreadsheet. Patrick transformed his garage into the inaugural SPL arena.

Eight lads entered. One trophy awaited. The road to glory had officially begun.

SPL becomes self-aware

The rounds came thick and fast. Upsets appeared, contenders emerged and the competition began to genuinely hot up.

Then came the hosting arms race. The SPL was becoming self-aware. Signs appeared, spectators got involved and a small and occasionally abusive fan base emerged.

The SPL had momentum. There was no going back.

SPL hits the road

The SPL escaped garages and living rooms for its first proper away day at The Baize Lounge in Selby.

The competition heated up. Contenders were emerging, the mind games had begun and the pressure of elite-level average darts was taking its toll.

Bob discovered a revolutionary tactical system: repeatedly spam the 19s.

Annoyingly, he got better.

Meanwhile, the bottle tops were retired. VLOOKUPs and reference tables arrived. The spreadsheet was evolving.

New year, big changes

The new year brought the SPL back into the living rooms. Bob, Craig and Luke hosted memorable nights.

The hospitality arms race continued, with Luke serving a full roast dinner to accompany the feast of average darts.

The SPL was becoming more than an event. It was becoming a way of life.

Interest from prospective players was growing and the main contenders were beginning to separate themselves.

Then came autoscoring. After bottle tops, spreadsheets and VLOOKUPs came cameras, screens and dartboards capable of recognising scores.

A new technological age rose like the sun on a spring morning. A new era beckoned.

1. Bottle tops
2. Spreadsheet
3. VLOOKUPs
4. Autoscoring

The finals

The trophy arrived from Temu in all its glory. After months of darts, drama, scoring disputes and technological escalation, Finals Night had arrived.

BOB. CRAIG. LUKE. BEN.

Four remained. Engy Arena hosted the occasion, complete with a second dartboard constructed on the driveway.

The design was questionable. The workmanship was questionable. The plans were provided by AI. Somehow, it stood.

The event was broadcast live on Twitch to a global audience of four people.

Then came the upset. Ben was crowned the inaugural SPL Champion.

Having reached the summit at his first attempt, Ben then retired from the competition.

One title. One championship. And he was gone.