Luke Littler facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Luke Littler |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Littler in April 2025
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | The Nuke | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 21 January 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Warrington, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing darts since | 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts | 23g Target Signature Gen 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Laterality | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Walk-on music | "Greenlight" by Pitbull featuring Flo Rida and LunchMoney Lewis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Organisation (see split in darts) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BDO | 2019–2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC | 2023– (Tour Card: 2024–) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WDF | 2019–2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current world ranking | NR (8 July 2021) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BDO majors – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Ch'ship | Last 16: 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Masters | Last 64: 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC premier events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Ch'ship | Winner (1): 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Matchplay | Last 32: 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | Last 32: 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam | Winner (1): 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Premier League | Winner (1): 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Ch'ship | Last 32: 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Open | Winner (1): 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Players Ch'ship Finals | Runner Up: 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Masters | Quarter Final: 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Series Finals | Winner (1): 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other tournament wins | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
European Tour Events (x3)
Players Championships (x3)
World Series of Darts (x2)
Youth events
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other achievements | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 Toyo Tires Televised Performance of the Year 2023, 2024 Winmau Young Player of the Year 2024 PDC Player of the Year |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Luke Littler, born on January 21, 2007, is a super talented darts player from England. He plays in events run by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He is currently ranked as the world number two player.
His nickname is "the Nuke". Luke is the current PDC World Champion. He won the 2025 World Championship when he was 17 years and 347 days old. This made him the youngest world champion in darts history!
Luke has also won four other big TV titles. These include the Premier League, Grand Slam, and World Series Finals in 2024. He also won the 2025 UK Open. In total, Luke has won thirteen PDC titles in his professional career. His five major wins are among the top nine in PDC history.
When he was younger, Luke won the 2023 PDC World Youth Championship. He also won five PDC Development Tours and the 2022 World Youth Masters. He even won the Junior Darts Corporation's World Championship and Super 16 events twice each.
Luke started playing in bigger darts events like the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and World Darts Federation (WDF) when he was just 12. He won his first senior title at age 14. He became the youngest player to win a match at a WDF World Championship.
At the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship, he was expected to lose, with odds of 66/1. But he surprised everyone! He beat six players, including former world champions. He reached the final but lost to Luke Humphries. In 2025, Luke reached the final again and won against Michael van Gerwen.
Luke is the youngest player to throw a perfect game, called a nine-dart finish, on TV. He did this at the 2024 Bahrain Darts Masters just before his 17th birthday. He's also the youngest to hit two televised nine-darters. This happened in the 2024 Premier League Darts final when he was 17. He even hit a nine-darter on TV when he was only 14 in 2021.
Luke's amazing rise to fame at age 16 made many more people interested in darts. This excitement was called "Littlermania" or the "Littler effect". He is known for scoring many 180s, which is the highest score you can get in one turn. He is also very good at hitting the "double 10" spot to finish a game.
Contents
Early Life and Darts Journey
Starting Young
Luke Littler was born on January 21, 2007. He grew up in Runcorn before moving to Warrington. He has two brothers and one sister.
Luke started playing darts when he was only 18 months old. His dad bought him a magnetic dart board from a pound shop. He scored his first 180 when he was six years old. He even hit a nine-dart finish when he was 13.
When he was 10, he joined the St Helens Darts Academy. He started playing in leagues for players under 21. He went to school at Padgate Academy in Warrington.
Early Career Highlights
In 2019, Luke won the England Youth Grand Prix. He also won the Isle of Man Masters youth competition. He won this title again in 2020.
In 2020, Luke won two titles on the JDC Tour. In 2021, he won three titles on the JDC Advanced Tour. He also won the youth title at the England Open in September 2021.
In November 2021, Luke won his first senior title. He won the Irish Open by beating Barry Copeland. This win allowed him to play in the 2022 WDF World Darts Championship at just 14 years old. Later that month, he hit a nine-dart finish during a JDC tournament.
Success in 2022
Luke started 2022 by winning the JDC Super 16 in Milton Keynes. He beat Eleanor Cairns in the final. In March, he won the youth competition at the Isle Of Man Open. He also reached the finals of the Isle of Man Classic.
At the 2022 WDF World Darts Championship, Luke won his first match. He beat Ben Hazel 3–2. He then lost to Richard Veenstra, who played very well.
Luke won another senior tournament at the Welsh Open warm-up. He also won the Romanian Classic in June. He beat Jelle Klaasen 5–1 in the final.
At the 2022 WDF Europe Cup Youth, Luke won three gold medals. He won in singles, team, and overall categories. He also helped England win a gold medal in the team competition at the 2022 WDF Europe Cup. In December 2022, Luke won the JDC World Darts Championship by beating Harry Gregory 5–0.
Big Steps in 2023
Luke continued to play well in 2023. He won the British Classic by beating Carl Wilkinson 5–0. On the same weekend, he won the British Open. He defeated Peter Jacques 5–2 in the final.
Luke played in his first big PDC event, the 2023 UK Open. He made it to the fourth round. He lost to Adam Gawlas 10–8.
In May and August 2023, Luke won two seasons of the MODUS Super Series. He beat Jacob Taylor and Colin Osborne in the finals.
Luke also played on the 2023 PDC Development Tour series. He won five different events on this tour. He finished second overall on the 2023 Development Tour.
On November 26, Luke beat Gian van Veen 6–4 in the 2023 PDC World Youth Championship final. The next month, he won the JDC World Darts Championship again. He defeated Álmos Kovács 5–3.
Amazing Career Highlights
Becoming a Star in 2024
Luke Littler made his first PDC World Championship appearance in 2024. He qualified because of his good results on the Development Tour. Many people thought he would not do well, with odds of 66/1.
He surprised everyone by beating five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld 4–1. He then beat Brendan Dolan and former world champion Rob Cross. This made him the youngest player ever to reach the PDC World Championship final. He was 16 years and 347 days old. In the final, Luke lost 4–7 to Luke Humphries.
In January, Luke played in his first World Series of Darts event. This was the 2024 Bahrain Darts Masters. He threw his first perfect game (a televised nine-dart finish) in his quarter-final match. He became the youngest player to do this on TV. He then won the final, beating Michael van Gerwen 8–5.
Luke reached another World Series final at the 2024 Dutch Darts Masters. He lost to Van Gerwen this time. He won his second World Series title at the 2024 Poland Darts Masters, beating Rob Cross 8–3.
Luke also won three titles in the 2024 PDC Players Championship series. He won two titles on the European Tour. He hit his third nine-dart finish of the year at the 2024 Belgian Darts Open. He also won the 2024 Austrian Darts Open. On September 15, Luke won the 2024 World Series of Darts Finals. He beat Michael Smith 11–4 in the final.
On November 17, Luke won the 2024 Grand Slam of Darts. He beat Martin Lukeman 16–3 in the final. This was his first major ranking title. He also reached the final of the 2024 Players Championship Finals, but lost to Luke Humphries.
Premier League Darts Debut
After the World Championship, Luke was chosen to play in the 2024 Premier League Darts. He won his first match against Luke Humphries 6–2. Luke won his first Premier League night on Night nine. He beat Nathan Aspinall 6–4 in the final.
Luke then won three more nights. He finished at the top of the league table after 16 weeks. In the play-offs, he beat Michael Smith in the semi-final. He then won his first major title by beating Humphries 11–7 in the final. He became the youngest player to win a major PDC tournament. Luke also hit a nine-darter in the final.
Becoming World Champion in 2025
Luke Littler started the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship as the fourth best player. He won his first match against Ryan Meikle 3–1. He even set a new record for the highest average score in one set during a World Championship match.
Luke made it to the final by beating many strong players. On January 3, 2025, he played against three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen. Luke won the final 7–3.
At 17 years and 347 days old, Luke became the youngest ever PDC World Darts Champion. He broke the record that Van Gerwen held. Luke also won the "Ballon d'Art" trophy for hitting the most 180s in the tournament. He earned over £1,000,000 and moved up to second in the world rankings.
In March, Luke won the 2025 UK Open for the first time. He beat James Wade 11–2 in the final. He also won the 2025 Belgian Darts Open again, beating Mike De Decker 8–5. This was his third European Tour title.
Premier League in 2025
Luke won Night two of the 2025 Premier League Darts in Belfast. He beat Luke Humphries 6–5 in the final. He then won Night five by defeating Nathan Aspinall.
Luke also won Night seven. He hit his third televised nine-dart finish in the final against Michael van Gerwen. This was the first time a nine-darter was completed on "double 15". Luke also won Night eight, beating Humphries 6–1 in the final.
How Luke Plays Darts
Luke Littler is known for his powerful scoring during matches. He often hits the maximum score of 180. He uses special darts made by Target with long 45mm points. Luke plays quickly and is very good at finishing games by hitting the "double 10" part of the dartboard.
Life Outside of Darts
Family and Hobbies
Luke Littler is a big fan of football club Manchester United. He also supports the rugby league club the Warrington Wolves. After he beat Raymond van Barneveld in the 2024 World Championship, famous footballer James Maddison invited him to a Premier League match.
Luke is friends with popular Twitch streamer and YouTuber Morgan Burtwistle, known as Angryginge. Luke has appeared in many of Burtwistle's videos. They play football and the video game EA Sports FC together. In February 2025, Luke played Burtwistle in a darts game on a livestream and won 3–2.
Being an Honorary Citizen
In February 2025, Luke was made an honorary citizen of his hometown, Warrington. The Warrington Borough Council gave him this award. It was to celebrate his "outstanding achievements" in darts and his contributions to the town. Luke said it was "a real honour".
World Championship Results
WDF
- 2022: Third round (lost to Richard Veenstra 0–3) (sets)
PDC
- 2024: Runner-up (lost to Luke Humphries 4–7)
- 2025: Winner (beat Michael van Gerwen 7–3)
Career Finals
PDC Major Finals: 7 (5 titles)
| Legend |
|---|
| World Championship (1–1) |
| UK Open (1–0) |
| Premier League (1–0) |
| World Series Finals (1–0) |
| Grand Slam (1–0) |
| Players Championship Finals (0–1) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2024 | World Championship |  Luke Humphries |
4–7 (s) | |
| Winner | 1. | 2024 | Premier League | Luke Humphries |
11–7 (l) | |
| Winner | 2. | 2024 | World Series Finals | Michael Smith |
11–4 (l) | |
| Winner | 3. | 2024 | Grand Slam | Martin Lukeman |
16–3 (l) | |
| Runner-up | 2. | 2024 | Players Championship Finals | Luke Humphries |
7–11 (l) | |
| Winner | 4. | 2025 | World Championship |  Michael van Gerwen |
7–3 (s) | |
| Winner | 5. | 2025 | UK Open | James Wade |
11–2 (l) |
PDC World Series Finals: 4 (2 titles)
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2024 | Bahrain Darts Masters | Michael van Gerwen |
8–5 (l) | |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2024 | Dutch Darts Masters | Michael van Gerwen |
6–8 (l) | |
| Winner | 2. | 2024 | Poland Darts Masters | Rob Cross |
8–3 (l) | |
| Runner-up | 2. | 2024 | Australian Darts Masters |  Gerwyn Price |
1–8 (l) |
Nine-Dart Finishes
| Date | Opponent | Tournament | Method | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 January 2024 | Nathan Aspinall |
2024 Bahrain Darts Masters | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | |
| 23 May 2024 | Luke Humphries |
2024 Premier League Darts | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | |
| 20 March 2025 | Michael van Gerwen |
2025 Premier League Darts | 3 x T20; 3 x T20, T20, T17, D15 |
See also
In Spanish: Luke Littler para niños
