Darts facts for kids

A dartboard, ready for a game!

Darts is a fun throwing game where you aim small, pointy objects called darts at a round target called a dartboard. The dartboard hangs on a wall. This game is super popular in the United Kingdom, especially in England. It was even the first country to call darts a real sport! People have been playing darts since around the 1870s. Back then, dartboards were made of wood and had to be soaked in water the day before playing.

The Dartboard

A standard dartboard is about 17 and three-quarters inches across. It's divided into 20 main sections, like slices of a pie. In the very middle, there are two special circles. The green outer circle is called the "single bull," and hitting it scores 25 points. The red spot in the center is the "bull," and it's worth 50 points!

Scoring Sections

Each of the 20 sections around the outside has a number from 1 to 20. These numbers tell you how many points you get if your dart lands in that section. There are also two special rings in these sections:

• The outer ring doubles your score for that section. So, if you hit the outer ring of the "20" section, you get 40 points!
• The triple ring (which is halfway between the bullseye and the outer edge) triples your score. If you hit the triple ring of the "20" section, you get a huge 60 points!

The highest score you can get with three darts in one turn is 180 points. This happens if all three of your darts hit the triple 20 section!

Number Layout

The numbers on a dartboard might seem random, but they are always in the same order. Starting from the top number and going around clockwise, the numbers are: 20, 1, 18, 4, 13, 6, 10, 15, 2, 17, 3, 19, 7, 16, 8, 11, 14, 9, and 5. This arrangement makes the game more challenging and fair.

Images for kids

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  A 'Doubles board' in a pub in North Yorkshire, England. These boards are common in the North of England.

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  Playing darts.

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  A diagram showing the best place to aim a dart, depending on how accurate a player is.

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  An 'East-End' or 'Fives' dartboard, which is a different type of dartboard.