World Darts Championship final LIVE: Luke Littler demolishes Michael van Gerwen to win first world title
The 17-year-old Littler brilliantly beat Van Gerwen 7-3 with an average of almost 103 as he went one better than 12 months ago
Luke Littler became the youngest ever world champion of darts with a brilliant display in the final at Alexandra Palace, blowing away three-time winner Michael van Gerwen to win 7-3.
Littler, 17, was beaten by world No 1 Luke Humphries in last year’s final, but he returned to the same stage 12 months later and made no mistake this time, overwhelming his esteemed opponent with peerless finishing to race into a 4-0 lead.
Van Gerwen appeared nervous in the opening forays and struggled to settle, competing gamely with his three-dart scoring but missing an array of doubles to give up winning positions. The Dutchman battled back in the latter stages but it was too little, too late, as the teenage superstar from Warrington cemented his name among the greats of the sport – and began what many believe will be a new era of dominance.
Follow all the reaction from Luke Littler’s victory at the World Darts Championship below.
Luke Littler fulfils destiny to become youngest darts world champion on emotional night at Alexandra Palace
Darts has a new world champion, and he’s a 17-year-old boy from Warrington. Luke Littler first picked up a set of magnetic darts bought by his dad from a pound shop while he was still in nappies, and was throwing 180s before most children could count that high. The journey from freakishly talented toddler to champion of the world ended on stage here at Alexandra Palace as he took down the sport’s modern alpha specimen, Michael van Gerwen, with a ruthless display of finishing, toying with him, bullying him, racing into a 4-0 lead and eventually winning 7-3.
Littler almost won his first world title in fittingly outrageous style, hitting bullseye twice on a pinprick but missing double 16 for the trophy. A moment later he returned to the oche for another shot with three darts in his hand, took a deep breath and muttered “come on” to himself. The crowd rose, camera phones hoisted over their heads like an offering to their new god. Littler hit double 16 at the second attempt, dropped his head into his hands and let the tears flow.
The analysts had foretold one of the great world championship finals as two geniuses of the game pushed each other to higher and higher levels. In truth it was often nervy and scrappy and riddled with mistakes, amid flecks of natural brilliance.
Luke Littler fulfils destiny to become youngest darts world champion
Littler’s brilliant finishing killed off the challenge of three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen to cement the teenaged genius among the greats of the sport
When will the 2025 Premier League Darts line-up be announced?
The PDC will confirm the eight players set to battle it out in the Premier League 2025 on Monday 6 January at 4:30pm GMT.
Luke Littler, Luke Humphries and Michael van Gerwen are essentially guaranteed to be in the competition.
Rob Cross, Stephen Bunting and Gerwyn Price are in contention alongside Michael Smith, Nathan Aspinall and Damon Heta, while Callan Rydz, Chris Dobey, Peter Wright and Mike De Decker are outside shouts to feature.
Premier League Darts 2025: Schedule, tickets, venues and potential line-up including Luke Littler
With the World Championship coming to an end, attention will quickly turn to Premier League Darts, with Belfast’s SSE Arena hosting the opening night of the new season on 6 February in 2025, leaving just a month between the final at ‘Ally Pally’ and the start of a wild tour throughout the UK, Ireland and Europe with 17 venues in total.
Reigning champion Littler will return, having produced nine darts from the gods on his way to victory in May, while world No. 1 Luke Humphries is sure to be back, as eight players battle for both the prestigious title and £1m in prize money.
The season-ending Play-Offs conclude on an action-packed night at The O2 in London on 29 May, with the final places up for grabs in the coming days.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 Premier League and a potential line-up.
Premier League Darts 2025: Schedule, tickets, venues and line-up
‘The Nuke’ won this year’s tournament to cap a meteoric rise, with the world’s best players battling it out each week around the UK, Ireland and Europe
Luke Littler, 17, becomes youngest world darts champion by beating Michael van Gerwen 7-3
Luke Littler became the youngest world champion in darts history on Friday when the 17-year-old Englishman lived up to his billing as Britain’s latest sporting superstar.
Littler beat three-time champion Michael van Gerwen 7-3 in the final at a boisterous Alexandra Palace in London.
It completes the remarkable rise of Littler, a prodigy from Warrington in northwest England who first threw a dart as an 18-month-old toddler, was junior world champion in 2023 and reached the world final last year — at age 16 — before losing to top-ranked Luke Humphries.
Luke Littler, 17, becomes youngest world darts champion by beating Michael van Gerwen 7-3
Luke Littler has become the youngest world champion in darts history after the 17-year-old Englishman lived up to his billing as Britain’s latest sporting superstar
How the Luke Littler effect made darts the sport of 2024
In one of the all-time great pieces of nominative determinism, the man at the epicentre of the poker boom was called Chris Moneymaker.
Moneymaker found himself in the eye of a perfect storm: interest in poker surged after the 1998 film Rounders starring Matt Damon and Ed Norton, at a time when the internet’s arrival spawned poker websites which drew millions of American players. In 2003, ESPN took a punt televising the biggest event in poker, the World Series.
They struck gold with Moneymaker, an accountant from Georgia who became the world champion, beating 852 opponents and turning his $40 buy-in into the $2.5m winner’s prize. He was an ordinary American Joe and his story had an inspirational effect. People who’d never before picked up a deck of cards suddenly wanted to be the next Moneymaker.
Two decades on, there is something of Moneymaker in the Luke Littler story. Like Moneymaker, Littler doesn’t necessarily look like the archetypal sporting superstar, and there is something relatable in that. Moneymaker was an ordinary accountant, and Littler is an ordinary teenager who likes computer games and junk food. Against the backdrop of his humanity, his godly talent is all the more mesmerising to watch.
And right now, Littler is having a similar effect on the game of darts as poker once felt, a niche game going mainstream.
How the Luke Littler effect made darts the sport of 2024
From Freddie Flintoff’s Bullseye revival to the must-have dartboard Christmas present, the sport is riding the crest of a wave thanks to Luke Littler’s unique blend of mesmerising talent and natural showmanship, writes Lawrence Ostlere, and it’s not slowing down
When will Littler next play darts?
Littler’s next match will be the opener of the Premier League Darts tournament, where he will face a rematch of this final – straight away, another match against van Gerwen.
That will likely take place on 6 February in Belfast.
LITTLER WINS THE WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP
As well as the title and £500,000 in prize money, Littler will now move to a career-high PDC ranking of second. He can add that to the 10 titles won in his debut year, and the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Award.
The Luke Littler era has officially begun – and it goes well beyond darts
Whether he beat or lost to Michael van Gerwen on the Alexandra Palacestage on Friday night, Luke Littler was always going to leave his second World Darts Championship as a winner. After all, he is the catalyst for and the face of the ongoing darts boom – all as a 17-year-old.
As it happened, Littler rubber-stamped his status as a generational talent and completed his coronation as King of the Palace by taking his first world title in ruthlessly impressive fashion.
From a break of throw in the opening leg of the match, to a 11-darter when he smelt weakness in the second set, to a 4-0 lead that turned into a crushing 7-3 triumph thanks to a 102.73 average and a superb 56 per cent success rate on the doubles, Littler dismantled the three-time world champion.
The Luke Littler era has officially begun – and it goes well beyond darts
The 17-year-old completed his coronation as King of the Palace by beating Michael van Gerwen and the sky is now the limit for one of sport’s greatest-ever teenagers
LITTLER WINS THE WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP
Van Gerwen: “Every 17 years a star is born"
On his loss, van Gerwen said: “Early doors, I’ve fallen behind, and after that I wasn’t going myself justice.
“ I think after going 4-0 down, I was definitely not the worst player out of us. Fair play to him, every chance he got, every moment he had to hurt me, he did it.
“I always say, every 17 years a star is born, and he’s one of them.
“I had a lovely tournament and I enjoyed every moment of this ride.
On the match, he adds: “At the beginning of the game I was letting myself down too much, and when you play a player with his ability, you’re going to be in trouble.
“It is what it is, you have to move on. He did well and he deserved it, what can I say. Of course it hurts, but that’s how it should be.
“I have to move on, I have to make sure I keep playing better,” he adds.
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