Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison has detailed the high-level darts culture during his time at Leicester City, naming Jamie Vardy as the standout performer. In an interview on the Double Top podcast, Maddison explained that darts was a fixed part of team life, with the dartboard traveling to every away game and European trip, even onto the plane. He noted that about eight players and sometimes staff would often throw the night before matches, holding little tournaments for fun.
Maddison emphasized the surprisingly high standard at the oche within the Leicester squad, stating that multiple players could produce heavy scores and 180s were no rarity. He listed Jamie Vardy, Danny Ward, himself, Harvey Barnes, Luke Thomas, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall as regular participants. The team particularly fanatically played a game called Tactics, better known as cricket, which was popular as a 2-v-2 format allowing four players to compete at once, often turning intense. Maddison remarked, "The level at Leicester was really high. Even if you think you're good, you could get absolutely smashed."
The midfielder also revealed the origin of his now-trademark darts celebration, where he throws an imaginary dart after scoring. He first performed it about five or six years ago, around the lockdown period and the World Darts Championship, inspired by an away game against Newcastle United on New Year's Day. That evening, which he believes was also the Worlds final, he used the pitch line as his oche after scoring in a 2-0 win. Maddison was rooting for Gary Anderson in the final against "Gezzy," leading him to adopt the celebration.
Maddison's gesture didn't go unnoticed in the darts world; he received messages from a few darters saying they loved the celebration. After mentioning in an interview that he hoped Anderson would win, he spoke to the two-time world champion and has been in contact with him since. Maddison said, "It's become a bit of my trademark now," as he continues to use the celebration regularly.
