HMRC slammed for 'brutal' post about darts star Luke Littler's '£83,000 tax bill'

5 January 2024, 13:29 | Updated: 5 January 2024, 13:31

By Kieran Kelly

@kellyjourno

HMRC has been slammed for a "brutal" tweet about Luke Littler's '£83,000 tax bill' just days after his darts final heartbreak.

Littler shocked the world with his incredible run to the World Championships final this month, which ended in heartbreak after he was beaten by Luke Humphries.

The 16-year-old sensation still received a £200,000 prize fund for his run to the final, £83,000 of which is expected to be handed over to the taxman.

After a news article appeared detailing this sum, HMRC's press office replied: "Big congrats to Luke on his fantastic run to the final. We can confirm the existence of income tax."

The reply has not gone down well on social media, with one person commenting: "This seems to be a most inappropriate tweet."

Another person added: "What a disgusting post to send at the time of his success. Nothing more than than utter waste of space in that press office."

A third said: "Pssst... nobody likes you."

Read More: Luke Littler could earn '£40million fortune' in sponsorship deals despite darts championship loss

Read More: ‘I couldn’t hold my own’: Heartbreak for teen darts sensation Luke Littler after Humphries bags World Darts title 7-4

Littler was just one win away from producing one of the greatest sporting stories of all time by becoming the youngest world darts champion.

But he fell at the final hurdle and was left in tears as Humphries bagged the title with a scintillating 7-4 victory, which saw him lift the Sid Waddell trophy for the first time.

He was one dart away from going 5-2 down, but he rallied and reeled off five successive sets to claim glory in style.

Littler said his whirlwind success the last few days had been “unbelievable” but that he just “couldn’t hold my own” following his defeat in Wednesday’s final.

The teenager's disappointment was visible following the loss as he teared up on screen. "Every game has been good," he said.

But his optimism towards future championships remains in place, as he said: "I just want to go and win it."