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Luke Littler has already earned £200,000 for his run to the final
You can follow live coverage of the PDC World Darts Championship final in a text commentary on the BBC Sport website from 19:30 GMT on Wednesday, 3 January.
Luke Littler began his PDC World Darts Championship debut hoping simply “to win one game” but now the 16-year-old sensation will face Luke Humphries on Wednesday evening in what is anticipated to be the most-watched final in the tournament’s 31-year history.
In polishing off his latest remarkable victory at Alexandra Palace – this time stunning former champion Rob Cross – Littler became the youngest person to reach the title decider.
And his meteoric rise has transcended the sport to an extent that his semi-final match set a Sky tournament viewing record, with a peak audience of 2.32m, comfortably surpassing the 2015 final (1.65m).
The record for a darts final is the 8.3m who tuned in to watch qualifier Keith Deller win the 1983 title by beating favourite Eric Bristow in the now defunct BDO World Championship on the BBC.
Littler, who began playing darts on a magnetic board when he was just 18 months old, entered this tournament ranked 164th in the world.
Since then he has made national and international headlines, defeated former world champions and sent crowds into raptures.
Should he achieve a success which seemed unthinkable at the start of his opening match only two weeks ago, he will rise into the world’s top 10 – and pocket a cool £500,000. Marketing experts say his earnings from potential sponsorship deals could be “huge”.
But regardless of the outcome against Humphries – the 28-year-old charging to the final on an 18-game unbeaten run – Littler’s life will never be the same after an extraordinary fortnight.
“It’s just unbelievable,” Littler said. “Unbelievable to even think I’m in the final. I wanted to just win a game and come back after Christmas and I’m still standing.
“In this World Championship I’ve got nothing to lose. It’s just a free hit for myself.
“There’s no pressure. It’s my first time being here and I’m still here, so I just take it in my stride and take it game by game.”
It is that fearless approach which has allowed Littler to defy the odds.
Demonstrating ice-cool composure belying his age and experience on one of his sport’s biggest stages, he completed victory over Cross with minimal fuss as he hit a concluding double 10 with awe-inspiring disregard for the magnitude of the occasion.
It was the fourth match of the tournament in which Littler, with only four senior matches at PDC premier events prior to the tournament, has averaged more than 100. His level did not waiver as the match reached its crescendo either, taking three consecutive sets to seal victory in style.
His secret? “Just got to stay focused, just got to be Luke Littler, and just relax,” he said after his semi-final.
“I stick to the routine that I’ve always been doing and whatever Luke Littler turns up, turns up. So far it’s been good in this tournament.”
That is a considerable understatement and although Littler, not 17 until 21 January, continues to perform as if this were all completely normal, it is not.
Overtaking Kirk Shepherd – who was 21 years and 88 days old in 2008 – as the youngest World Championship finalist, he has overcome four top-30 ranked players along the way, including his childhood idol and five-time champion Raymond van Barneveld.
Luke Littler: 16-year-old on celebratory meal after victory at World Championship
The talent which has brought him here has long been evident. James Hurrell, Littler’s England darts captain when he was 14, believes it is his confidence which sets him apart.
“He’s just ridiculous, really,” Hurrell told BBC Radio 5 Live. “I think it’s the confidence. His idol is Phil Taylor and he is just carrying on from [him]. He bounces off the pressure – I think he gets better [as it increases].”
Should Littler triumph against Humphries, he will become the youngest winner by quite some margin. Michael van Gerwen was aged 24 years and nine months when he won his first title to set the record in 2014.
Darts referee Russ Bray, for whom the final represents the final match of his career, believes three-time world champion Van Gerwen is the only player comparable to Littler at his age.
“At 17, Michael was unbelievable, the same as Luke, hitting nine darters in TV tournaments,” Bray told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“For Luke to come through the way he has done is incredible. He’s taken out some really big names and he seems so, so cool.
“He’s certainly an entertainer, which is what you want. You want style in the game. He’s a raw talent and when you see how he performs up there, with no fear at his age, it’s a breath of fresh air.”
Littler’s run has captured the imagination beyond anything darts has seen before.
The peak audience for his most recent win was an increase of 165% on last year’s semi-final figures – and 40% higher than Sky’s previous overall record (1.65m) for the final in January 2015.
Tuesday’s peak is, for comparison, in line with Sky’s live coverage of Premier League football.
Premier League footballers are among those engrossed in Littler’s story, with the teenager closing in on 500,000 Instagram followers and 100,000 on X.
“Obviously I’ve got a lot of followers now, I’ve had a message off Luke Shaw of Manchester United, Rio Ferdinand and I had a message off Gary Neville and Jonny Evans before my game against Barney, so it’s just crazy,” said Littler.
“People I’ve looked up to, and especially my club Manchester United, are wishing me luck.”
Luke Littler on Manchester United’s messages of support
Ticket trading website Viagogo has reported a “surge in demand” for final seats, with the average price rising to £238 per ticket, £73 higher than for last year’s showpiece.
Meanwhile, a theme park has offered Runcorn-born Littler “the keys to the resort” – should he triumph against Humphries.
“It has definitely had a good effect,” said Littler’s friend Eleanor Cairns, Girls World Champion in 2022, who spoke to him shortly before his semi-final.
“In the darts shop alone we have had loads of kids coming in saying ‘I want to be like Luke Littler’. It is incredible to see the young people can look up to him,” she added.
“Everyone is saying ‘he is only 16’ but I don’t think he realises himself that he is only 16. It is incredible to see what he has achieved, the amount of money, everything that comes with it and the publicity.
“Like he has said, he only wanted to win one game so he didn’t realise he would get this far. There is no pressure on him. He has already shown what he can do.”
‘Humphries could be a party spoiler’
Standing in Littler’s way of a historic success is Humphries, also through to his first final and now world number one after an impressive 6-0 semi-final win over Scott Williams.
“It feels amazing, I would never have imagined myself to be world number one and I did it in style, I was really pleased with the performance,” Humphries said.
“I have always said world number one can last a number of months, world champion is forever.”
Humphries, a three-time beaten quarter-finalist, averaged 108.74 in a victory over Williams, which is in the top 10 in the history of the tournament.
“Humphries has won the last three PDC TV tournaments and he’s only 29, we lose the perspective of age here,” said referee Bray.
“Littler is a kid but Humphries is only 29 years of age. He’s very much a young man in the sport. His talent is also amazing.
“He’s gone to world number one now by getting to the final and I honestly think he could be a party spoiler.”