Kind-hearted Luke Littler reveals what he did with Cheltenham winnings as darts superstar lives up to classy promise

Luke Littler has proved he is as big-hearted off the oche as he is dangerous on it — donating his entire Cheltenham Festival winnings to a cancer charity that supports young people and their families, in a heartwarming gesture that shows there is far more to the teenage superstar than his ability to find the treble twenty.

The world number one travelled to Prestbury Park earlier this month as part of an all-star darts delegation that included rival Luke Humphries and Nathan Aspinall, soaking up the electric atmosphere of one of British sport’s greatest occasions. But while the festival represented a well-earned break for a player who has been competing at a relentless intensity in 2026, Littler also found the time to do something quietly brilliant — putting his Cheltenham gains to genuinely good use.

The Bet, the Win and the Promise Kept

The charity bet was organised in collaboration with tipsters Pro Sports Advice, who invited all three darts stars to stake £1,000 each on a horse of their choosing, with any returns going to good causes.

For Littler, the choice of horse was Lossiemouth — and the pick proved impeccable. Lossiemouth swept aside all rivals to claim a brilliant victory in the Unibet Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. The 7/5 favourite’s Cheltenham record was flawless going into the race, and remained so afterwards, never looking in any sort of trouble ahead of a six-and-a-half-length defeat of Brighterdaysahead as The New Lion came home in third.

With his horse triumphant, Littler wasted no time in making good on his promise. Sharing a screenshot of his betting slip on Instagram, Littler wrote: “Cheltenham charity bet — Lossiemouth was my pick for a straight win and it done the job and wanted the money to go to @thematthew22fund.”

The Matthew22 Fund: A Charity Close to His Heart

Littler’s successful wager on Lossiemouth in the Champion Hurdle resulted in the substantial donation to The Matthew22 Fund, an organisation dedicated to supporting young cancer patients and their families.

The charity expressed their gratitude on Facebook, stating: “Everyone at The Matthew22 Fund would like to thank prosportsadviceltd for their charity bet at the Cheltenham races.” The organisation added: “We are delighted that lukethenukelittler picked our charity to donate his winnings to. This has raised an amazing £2,500 to help us continue to support young people and their families who are facing cancer and other life-changing illnesses.”

The Matthew22 Fund was established to honour the memory of Matthew Hollingsworth, who passed away in March 2022 at just 22 years old following a battle with bone cancer. Since its founding, the charity has accumulated more than £160,000 to assist cancer patients and their families, whilst also providing sponsorship for community events and projects.

The connection between Littler — the youngest ever PDC world champion — and a fund created in memory of a young man who died tragically at 22 is a poignant one. In directing his winnings towards The Matthew22 Fund, the teenager chose a charity that resonates with his own generation: a cause founded in the name of a young person, fighting for young people.

All Three Darts Stars Gave Their Winnings Away

What makes the story even more wholesome is that Littler was not alone in his generosity. The entire darts contingent at Cheltenham chose to channel their winnings towards charitable causes, turning a fun day at the races into something with lasting impact.

Luke Humphries placed a £1,000 bet on 9/4 favourite Old Park Star, which won the opening race of the week — banking the former world champion £3,250, which he took to social media to say he was giving to charity. According to reports, Humphries directed his winnings to Prostate Cancer UK.

Nathan Aspinall, meanwhile, also played his part — placing an each-way bet on Winston Junior in the Fred Winter Juvenile Hurdle, which finished second, and donating his returns to Teens United, a charity supporting young people facing serious illness.

The collective generosity of the three darts stars — three competitors who spend their Thursdays trying to beat each other in the Premier League, but who apparently shared an equally strong desire to give something back at Cheltenham — painted a touching picture of the camaraderie that exists within professional darts away from the competitive arena

A Man in Form, On and Off the Dartboard

The charitable moment came at an extraordinary time in Littler’s career. This betting success came just days after Littler won £120,000 for his victory at the UK Open darts tournament at the weekend — a player who simply cannot stop winning.

The festival was buzzing with celebration, with Littler attended by girlfriend Faith Millar and joined by fellow darts stars Luke Humphries and Nathan Aspinall. The world number one appeared in his element — a young man comfortable at one of sport’s most glamorous occasions, yet grounded enough to make sure that when his horse came in first, the money went straight to a cause bigger than himself.

Lossiemouth’s Cheltenham record was perfect coming into the race, having won every single one of her four Festival appearances, earning her the nickname ‘the Queen of Cheltenham.’ Littler had picked a champion, as he so often does.

The Bigger Picture: Littler’s Generosity Is Becoming a Pattern

This is not the first time Littler has used his platform and financial rewards to support others. The 19-year-old has spoken openly about what his success means to his family, and he has demonstrated time and again that the wealth generated by his extraordinary darts career is not something he hoards. Littler has already reportedly spent a significant portion of his world championship prize money purchasing a property for his parents, having previously said: “Us as a family we’ve never had this sort of money.”

That same spirit — of sharing success, of thinking beyond himself — is what makes Littler’s Cheltenham gesture so fitting. He could have kept the £2,500. He could have added it to the coffers of a teenager already earning more than almost any young athlete in Britain. Instead, he pointed to a charity, shared the news publicly to draw attention to the cause, and moved on.

It is a small moment in the grand sweep of what is becoming an extraordinary career. But it says something important about the person behind the darts. On the oche, Luke Littler is ‘The Nuke’ — explosive, ruthless, almost impossible to stop. Away from it, he is apparently someone rather different: a 19-year-old who backed a horse at Cheltenham and gave away every penny he won.