Beat Luke Littler on Netflix: how amateurs can win £501,000

Netflix is showing a live darts special called Beat Luke Littler on Friday 30 October 2026 [3]. Twenty amateur players will each get one leg of 501 against Luke Littler, then world No. 1 [1]. Anyone who wins a leg takes £501,000 [1].

What the format asks of the players

Each player gets a single leg of 501, and the show is described as one night and one chance [2]. The prize goes to any amateur who beats Littler in that leg [1]. The show aims to bring the sport's electric atmosphere to the streaming service [1]. Netflix describes it as a live sports show, and the producers present it as one night in which the challengers face the world champion on live television [2].

Netflix announced the show in late July 2026, and Broadcast reported that Banijay UK is producing the event for Netflix [3]. Netflix opened a nationwide recruitment search, and Littler appears in a video message that launches it [2].

Who runs it and how players qualify

Netflix created the show in partnership with the PDC, the organisation behind professional darts [1]. Workerbee, a Banijay label, produces it [2] [1]. Workerbee is part of Banijay UK, the same group Broadcast names as the producer [2] [3].

Players qualify through open regional heats. The heats were scheduled for London and Manchester in September 2026, and the final 20 players are selected from them [2]. A bullet point in the announcement says the heats run across the country, but the body text names only London and Manchester [2]. Interested players register at BeatLukeLittler.com [1].

The same Netflix announcement page also lists other UK sport projects. These include a renewed deal for The Rest Is Football's Premier League coverage, a Jose Mourinho documentary and a UK version of the Untold sport documentary series [1]. None of them is part of Beat Luke Littler.

Littler's record behind the challenge

Littler won the PDC World Championship in 2025 and again in 2026, which makes him a back-to-back champion [1]. He was world No. 1 and had just won the World Matchplay when the event was announced [1].

Littler said: "Everyone thinks they can beat me. Now they get a chance to prove it. Bring it on." [1]

What comes next

The show airs live on Netflix on Friday 30 October 2026 [1] [3]. The announcement does not give a start time, so viewers should check the Netflix listing closer to the date [2].

The sources were published in July 2026. They do not say which players reached the final 20 or how the night will unfold [1]. Readers who want the result will need coverage from after the broadcast, which none of the sources cited here provides [2].