By Shane Ireland,Stephen Killen

Copyright walesonline

Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler has shocked darts lovers after sharing a cyptic video hinting at a potential retirement from the sport. The 18-year-old phenomenon uploaded the clip to social media on Thursday, just days his defeat to Michael van Gerwen at the World Series of Darts. Littler has revolutionised the sport and captured global attention since exploding onto the scene as a 17-year-old during the 2024 World Darts Championship. The Manchester United supporter stunned the watching public, outclassing his rivals after entering as a wildcard and advancing all the way to the final, where Luke Humphries ultimately defeated him. Nevertheless, he secured his payback 12 months later when he triumphed over Humphries at the Alexandra Palace in London. Littler has already amassed an impressive collection of silverware during his short career, including the Premier League title, World Series, UK Open and Grand Slam of Darts as well as his world title. Yet on Thursday, his social media post left fans stunned as Littler shared a playful video implying that his days on the oche had come to a premature end, reports the Mirror . Accompanied by melancholic music, the Warrington native declared: “I’ve had an awesome career, I couldn’t have asked for much better for myself. “You know it’s been full on for two years, I’ve done many great things, the Premier League at the age of 17 on debut, the nine-darters on tele, winning the World Championships at 18 – the youngest to ever do it. “I just want to say thanks to all my fans for the support over the last two years, it’s been phenomenal. “It’ll shock some people that I’m taking a step back, it’s not been an easy decision, now I want to do something that I love.” As the music fades in the clip and he leaves his darts on his chair, draped with his famous purple shirt, Littler is heard saying: “Do you think they’ll fall for that?” One user responded: “Is this rage bait or what?” Another commented: “Do what you have to do Luke, we will support you all the way bud.” A social media user joked that Littler was preparing to replace struggling United head coach Ruben Amorim, given his disastrous start to the campaign. They quipped: “Littler is about to break the internet.. Next Man Utd Manager?” Nevertheless, some were swift to employ their investigative abilities, connecting the pieces to suggest that Littler was hinting that he was set to take advantage of the fresh EA Sports FC launch. Pre-release access for the title commences tomorrow, September 19, ahead of the full launch on September 26. “The new FIFA is out…he’s playing FIFA the weekend,” one user stated. It would be logical that Littler was acknowledging the debut of the newest video game given the 18-year-old has consistently spoken about playing FIFA and EA Sports FC. Following his meteoric rise to fame after reaching the World Championships final in 2024, he quipped that he would use his £200,000 winnings on FIFA points, a digital currency for the game’s Ultimate Team mode. “No idea. The first thing that comes into my head is FIFA points,” he responded when asked how he would spend his winnings. Meanwhile, speculation emerged last September that Littler had pulled out of the Hungarian Darts Trophy, in order to play the newly-released EA Sports FC, which launched on September 20, 2024.