Luke Littler looking to beat incredible British sports record he has been given ‘zero chance of replicating’
LUKE LITTLER is aiming to become the greatest darts player in history – perhaps by the age of 40.
The Nuke, 17, became the youngest world champion of all time when he beat Michael van Gerwen 7-3 in an electrifying final at Ally Pally.
And he fancies a crack at Phil Taylor’s mark of 16 world crowns – achieved in a 23-year period – which has long been considered unmatchable in British sport.
Bookies have made him 33-1 to reach 17 world championships and Littler said: “I want to become one of the best of all time.
“It will take however many times. Phil Taylor won many. I know Michael has won 100-plus titles and three worlds.
“But for myself, I want to win as much as I can.
“I just want to pick up every title. Obviously that’s what people will be looking into, after I won my first world title so young.
“But if I want it, then I’m sure deep down I can go do it.
“I’ve said previously I would like to win one of every major and then add on to them.
“But I could be chasing Michael’s three titles – and potentially Phil’s 16.”
World Darts Championship - top stories
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Taylor’s first success at world level came aged 29 when he walloped mentor and the legendary Eric Bristow 6-1 at Lakeside in January 1990 – a real passing of the baton moment.
And The Power’s final triumph came aged 52 when he beat Michael Van Gerwen 7-4 in 2013 in the PDC ranks.
Luke Littler prize money breakdown
Here is all the prize money Luke Littler has won so far after being crowned 2025 PDC World Darts Championship winner:
World Championship 2025 – £500,000
World Championship 2024 – £200,000
Grand Slam of Darts 2024 – £150,000
European Tour – £91,000
Player Championships events – £71,500
Players Championship final runner-up – £60,000
UK Open 2023 + 2024 – £17,500
World Matchplay – £10,000
World Grand Prix – £7,500
European Championship – £7,500
(Unranked) Premier League Darts – £315,000
TOTAL: £1.43 million
Taylor, 64, said: “Huge Congratulations to Luke. What a fantastic performance and now a champion of the world.”
Dennis Priestley, a two-time world darts champion, says Luke Littler has “zero chance of replicating the success Phil Taylor had in darts – no chance whatsoever”.
But the Yorkshireman, 74, added: “It’s frightening how good this kid could be.
“The distraction now will be enormous and he must not forget what’s got him where he is.
“He’s got a long way to go and only time will tell what legacy he’ll eventually leave.
“I do think what Luke has achieved is up there as one of the greatest sporting achievements ever.”
Littler collected £500,000 for the stunning victory on Friday night in front of a Sky Sports peak TV audience of 3.1million – the highest for a non-football event – and on his 13th game in the competition.
The Warrington lad is the most famous teenager in the world and has drawn comparisons to other prodigious young talents.
Brazilian football hero Pele scored twice in a 5-2 win over Sweden in the 1958 World Cup Final aged 17.
Tennis ace Boris Becker became the youngest-ever winner of the men’s singles Wimbledon Championship aged 17 in 1985.
And snooker maestro Ronnie O’Sullivan was the same age as Littler when he lifted the 1993 UK Championship, having overcome Stephen Hendry 10-6 in the final in Preston.
The new world No.2 – beaten by Luke Humphries in the 2024 world final – said: “It’s crazy to even think about being mentioned in the same sentence as some of the best sportsmen there’s ever been.
“Even if I had won it last year as a 16-year-old, it would have been incredible.
“But a year later I’ve won the title and it feels a bit crazy.
“This is why we play the game. For the titles. Obviously, the money is there. We all know it is.
“But one thing I do enjoy, when I lift the trophy, is when all the confetti comes down and the sparkles go up.
“Obviously, I would love to dominate. I’d love to win everything. But you cannot, it’s tough.”
One financial expert claims Littler could earn up to £100MILLION throughout a long career in terms of prize money, sponsors and commercial deals.
Dr Rob Wilson told LuckyBlock: “As each year passes his prize money will increase year on year, as will his endorsement activity as his profile grows.
“He should comfortably earn £20million in prize money over the next 10 years.
“Add to that sponsorship, the inevitable ‘At Home With The Littlers’ documentary that will follow and other revenue streams and his career earnings could easily hit £100million.
“In sport no-one has seen this sort of meteoric profile and earnings explosion.
“The likes of Ronaldo, Messi and Beckham have all exceeded these numbers, but that came later in their careers. Littler is unique.”
List 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