As Luke Littler sets out to defend his World Championship title at Alexandra Palace, his impact since he broke through on the same stage two years prior has been monumental.
Littler, now 18, rocked the darting world with a run to the World Championship final in his debut PDC tournament at 16-years-old.
With the help of his sponsors Target and his father Anthony, ‘The Nuke’ now has his own darts academy in his hometown Warrington, run by head coach Sandra Rule.
As the only academy with the world number one’s name attached to it, interest is booming as the next generation aspire to reach Littler’s heights.
However, the Liverpool Open Darts League hasn’t seen the same uptake, with the news announced this week that the league has been forced down to four teams from 2026 due to teams being unable to fund their participation.
Listen to Oliver Powell’s report on the ‘Luke Littler Effect’.
