4 days ago
21
LUKE LITTLER wasted no time splashing the cash after his heroic PDC World Darts Championship win.
The Nuke, 17, blitzed past Michael van Gerwen to be crowned the youngest world champion in history.
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AFPHe broke down in tears on stage before getting his hands on the famous Sid Waddell Trophy.
Littler could not hide his reaction when it was announced he would pick up a cheque for a staggering £500,000.
And then in the Ally Pally car park, the new champ was snapped generously sharing a large sum of money with his brother.
The Littler family, including his parents Lisa and Anthony, walked out of the North London arena to get into a taxi as his dad carried a miniature replica trophy.
But just as they were hopping in, Luke – in a blue hoody over his darts stage shirt – seemingly handed over the wad of notes for Leon, who in turn kissed his younger sibling on the head.
It may well have been a classy early birthday present for the older Littler as he turns 21 this weekend.
The jubilant clan were unsurprisingly all smiles upon leaving after the final, no doubt heading off to celebrate the teenage sensation’s remarkable achievement.
Many of them – including YouTuber AngryGinge – were wearing iconic blue-and-yellow Littler shirts.
One man, possibly the driver or a security guard, was pictured wheeling a black flight case through the car park – likely containing the PDC silverware.
Littler also collected the giant Ballon d’Art from Paddy Power after hitting the most 180s in the tournament.
His extra £500,000 took his PDC Order of Merit to more than £1.1million – enough to take him up to a new career-high second in the rankings.
Littler revealed he rewatched the 2024 final defeat to Luke Humphries before the Van Gerwen clash to inspire him to victory.
But there were minor concerns for the Nuke when he appeared to injure himself with the Sid Waddell Trophy on the stage during the celebrations.
However, Leon insisted that would not stop the partying – although he recognised there is a limit on what they can do because Luke does not turn 18 until January 21.
He said: “Can’t do much with him, can you! He’s 17.
“He’ll go out, chill on his game, maybe order some food. I’ll do the celebrating for him!”
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READ MORE on all the fall-out from Luke Littler's incredible world title win...
- All the reaction as it happens in our LIVE BLOG
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- Incredible rise in darts viewing figures revealed
- Littler miles off being world No 1 despite £500k win
- Littler breaks incredible record with stunning win
- Fans praise Sky Sports for ‘lovely’ Donna Mardle touch
- Fans in tears as Chris Hoy presents Ballon d’Art trophy
- Van Gerwen makes another X-rated comment on live TV
- Littler reveals unusual preparation for final
- Inside wild celebrations at Littler’s darts academy
- How Littler celebrated incredible win – as tributes pour in
- Littler copies iconic Lionel Messi trophy picture
Littler himself admitted he might allow himself a treat with the extra cash – having already surpassed £1m in career earnings late last year.
The champ explained: “There probably will be a big purchase when I get my head around the amount of money I’ve won, but I have said it in other interviews, I don’t like to talk about the money, but it is there.”
“It’s heavy (the trophy).
“It’s probably going on the living-room floor. To see it there and know it’s mine, I cannot wait.”
Littler then added his grand plans to beat Phil Taylor’s staggering PDC record.
He continued: “If I want the 16, then I am sure I could possibly achieve it.
“If deep down, if I really want it, then with my ability, I’m sure I can achieve a lot more. But I know I’m in this for a long, long time.
“I just want to try and win as many titles as I can this year. I won ten last year.
“I’ve started the year off with one. But just try and add on to that ten. Maybe win ten, 11 or 12 or even more titles.
“But if I end 2025 with nothing, I have picked the big one up.”
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Click News and MediaList of all-time Darts World Champions
BELOW is a list of darts world champions by year.
The list does not include winners from the pre-Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) era or BDO world champions.
That means Raymond van Barneveld, for example, is only listed once – Barney also won four BDO titles – and none of Eric Bristow’s five BDO titles are included.
- 1994 – Dennis Priestley
- 1995 – Phil Taylor
- 1996 – Phil Taylor (2)
- 1997 – Phil Taylor (3)
- 1998 – Phil Taylor (4)
- 1999 – Phil Taylor (5)
- 2000 – Phil Taylor (6)
- 2001 – Phil Taylor (7)
- 2002 – Phil Taylor (8)
- 2003 – John Part
- 2004 – Phil Taylor (9)
- 2005 – Phil Taylor (10)
- 2006 – Phil Taylor (11)
- 2007 – Raymond van Barneveld
- 2008 – John Part (2)
- 2009 – Phil Taylor (12)
- 2010 – Phil Taylor (13)
- 2011 – Adrian Lewis
- 2012 – Adrian Lewis (2)
- 2013 – Phil Taylor (14)
- 2014 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2015 – Gary Anderson
- 2016 – Gary Anderson (2)
- 2017 – Michael van Gerwen (2)
- 2018 – Rob Cross
- 2019 – Michael van Gerwen (3)
- 2020 – Peter Wright
- 2021 – Gerwyn Price
- 2022 – Peter Wright (2)
- 2023 – Michael Smith
- 2024 – Luke Humphries
- 2025 – Luke Littler
Most World Titles
- 14 – Phil Taylor
- 3 – Michael van Gerwen
- 2 – John Part, Adrian Lewis, Gary Anderson, Peter Wright
- 1 – Dennis Priestley, Raymond van Barneveld, Rob Cross, Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler
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