Luke Littler won the PDC World Darts Championship in January and was rewarded with £500,000 for his efforts, but that figure could soon double if Luke Humphries is correct
Teenage darts sensation Luke Littler is “99.9 per cent sure” the World Darts Championship’s top prize could soon skyrocket to a staggering £1million. The 18-year-old bagged the £500,000 top prize in January after defeating Michael van Gerwen in his Ally Pally triumph.
Since his title win, Littler has been a formidable force on the circuit, securing a maiden UK Open win and dominating in the Premier League – with three night wins and 13 match victories under his belt. He even managed to hit an impressive nine-darter in Cardiff on Thursday.
However, despite his success, when it comes to the PDC Order of Merit, The Nuke still trails behind world No. 1 Luke Humphries by over £600k, thanks to Cool Hand’s stellar performance over the last two years.
Humphries’ suggestion of a prize money increase for the worlds could potentially guarantee the champion the coveted No. 1 spot. Yet, despite Littler’s undeniable impact on the sport, he remained tight-lipped when asked about the potential growth of the Ally Pally pot.
“I’ve not been told anything,” the young star told SportsBoom. “But obviously, it’s been going around for many years. It’s been £500,000 for the past however many years, but I think that’s the next big step for us players [a £1m winning share].”
When asked if such an increase would represent another significant leap for the sport of darts, whose first PDC world champion, Dennis Priestley, took home just £16k for winning the competition in 1994, the superstar replied: “It would be, yeah.
“Obviously, whoever wins it, they’ll obviously go straight to number one. So, if it’s this year or if it’s next year, I do feel 99.9 per cent sure it’ll happen.”
Despite a hint of doubt about the increase in the winning prize, Littler’s rival, Humphries, was convinced during a talkSPORT interview that a £1m paycheck for the PDC world champion wasn’t just a possibility – it was inevitable.
Humphries shared his priorities, saying: “I’m not fighting desperately to be world number one. I’d rather be world champion, which he [Littler] is, so for him, I’m sure he’d be happier to be world champion than world number one.
“For me, it doesn’t matter what happens in the next six, seven, eight months. It’s all about the world championships. We all know that the world champion is going to get a million quid.
“So, whoever wins that is going to be world number one. If I win that, I’ll be world number one for a long time. If Luke wins that he’s going to be world number one for a long time.”
This speculation has been fuelled by PDC chairman Eddie Hearn’s revelation in 2021, suggesting that his father, Barry, has already prepared the foundation for such a substantial prize to become reality.
Promoter Hearn said of his father: “The great thing about my old man is that all he ever thinks about is how can we provide more opportunities for dart players.
“How can we make them wealthier, how can we reward them? I would love to make the World Championship a million-pound first prize. That’s the general crazy plan that we’ll always talk about in board meetings.”
Littler was handsomely rewarded for his exploits in the Premier League on Thursday evening, as his nine-dart finish – which was comprised of two near-perfect 180s and a 141 finished off with a scarcely-before-seen double 15 – saw him take home a set of golden darts courtesy of tournament sponsors BetMGM.
Both Humphries and fellow star Rob Cross have hit perfection on the Premier Legaue stage so far this campaign, and they, along with Littler, have been gifted a set of 18ct solid gold darts worth a whopping £30k.
