Alexandra Palace, December 2023 was the setting when Luke Littler announced himself globally. 22 months and 22 finals later, he is the face of the Darting world.
Littler notched his seventh major ranking PDC title two weeks ago, breaking the record set by Darts legend Michael Van Gerwen to become the youngest arrowsmith to win a total of seven majors.
The world number one spot is next in the “Nuke’s” trajectory, with rival Luke Humphries still holding top seed in the PDC world rankings. Humphries has been Littler’s biggest competition in the Warrington native’s relatively short career.
The world number one “Cool Hand” has totalled eight majors in his career and is the only darts player to beat Littler in a major ranking final.
Littler can dethrone Humphries as world number one this weekend if he claims the European Championship in Dortmund. £70,000 separates the two tungsten throwers with £120,000 up for grabs in Germany.
Arguably Luke Littler’s greatest defeat came at the hands of the aforementioned Luke Humphries. One of the great underdog stories in sporting history was vanquished by Humphries when they faced off in the 2024 World Championship (the pinnacle of Darts).
16 years old at the time, Littler was beaten 7-4 by Humphries. Since then the two Luke’s have dominated the Darting world competing in all fourteen major ranking finals since 2024 and winning twelve of them combined. The two rivals share a professional relationship, often practising together and advising each other on their respective careers.
Luke Littler reached his Darting destiny in 2025 when he defeated Michael Van Gerwen to win his first World Championship, becoming the youngest winner of the famous Sid Waddell Trophy in the process.
Although Luke Littler’s story has just begun, his dominance has been evident in this new era of Darts.
