Luke Littler to Make History with Surprising Participation in £15,000 Darts Tournament
LUKE LITTLER has the opportunity to become the first athlete to concurrently hold World titles at both senior and youth levels.
The Nuke claimed his second consecutive World Championship victory in January, securing a remarkable £1 million in prize money.
At just 19 years old—he won’t celebrate his 20th birthday until January—he is still eligible for the junior category.
In an unexpected decision, he has chosen to compete in the qualifying rounds of the Winmau World Youth Championship starting on Monday.
The tournament, featuring 128 players, will be hosted at the modest Robin Park Leisure Centre in Wigan, comprising a round-robin phase followed by knockout stages.
The final two competitors will vie for the championship on ITV on Sunday, November 29, at Butlin’s Minehead Resort in Somerset.
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This event will coincide with the final day of the Ladbrokes Players Championship Finals, a significant televised competition that Littler won last year, although he has yet to qualify for the 2026 edition.
The top prize in this youth tournament is a modest £15,000, likely less than his earnings from exhibition matches.
His choice to participate is intriguing—despite already achieving substantial financial success, he appears eager for match experience following his unexpected first-round exit at the World Grand Prix last week.
Women’s world champion Beau Greaves, who defeated Littler in a thrilling semi-final last year, will not take part in this behind-closed-doors event.
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The defending champion, Gian van Veen from the Netherlands, has also chosen to skip the tournament.
Other competitors with prior World experience include Dutch player Jurjen van der Velde and English players Cam Crabtree, Charlie Manby, and Owen Bates.
Littler will enter the competition as the number one seed, reflecting his position as world No. 1 in the PDC rankings.
He claimed victory in this competition in November 2023 while still an amateur, overcoming Gian van Veen 6-4 in the final.
Just a month later, he garnered global attention by reaching the Ally Pally final at the age of 16 in his debut.
It is quite uncommon in professional sports for an active world champion to also hold the youth title.