Luke Littler broke down in tears after regaining the Premier League trophy on The O2 stage, admitting he came close to quitting the invitational event. The 19-year-old two-time champion and world number one endured a tumultuous third Premier League campaign, with on-stage arguments and boos from crowds, before defeating Luke Humphries 11-10 in one of the all-time great finals.
Speaking after his victory, Littler told Sky Sports: 'After Brighton [in week 10], I think I came off stage and the incident in Manchester [argument with Gian van Veen], I was sat at home saying to Faith [his partner], 'I don't want to do it anymore, just the crowd every week'. I said to her, 'I'm down bad'.' The tension began in week nine in Manchester after a missed match dart by Van Veen, with the pair exchanging a frosty handshake. Van Veen said Littler 'was out of order' at what he perceived to be a celebration at the miss, and Littler gestured that Van Veen was a 'cry baby'. They did not speak for multiple weeks.
After Manchester came Brighton, where Littler was dumped out at the quarter-final stage by Stephen Bunting with a measly 84 average. Then came Rotterdam, where fans were behind Van Veen, before events in Liverpool and Leeds where Littler was routinely booed because of his support of Manchester United. Littler called the Rotterdam reception the 'worst I have experienced' and said his mindset was now to 'just expect the worst'. On Wednesday at the pre-finals night media event, he called the fans 'fickle' for mixing booing and cheering. Just over 24 hours later, the O2 crowd loudly cheered him after he broke down twice during his on-stage TV interview.
Littler, who won £410,000 in prize money, hoped his release of emotions would be a 'turning point' in his relationship with the crowd. He said: 'I'm not asking for sympathy - I just told the world how I was feeling during the Premier League. The biggest outcome is next to me [the trophy]. From the Brighton game, the Manchester game, I've proved everyone wrong once again and I can't believe it.' For the third year in a row, Littler finished top of the Premier League standings, reached the final for the third consecutive year, and has won the title in two of them. He set a new record for night wins in the league phase in 2025 and matched that tally of six in 2026.
Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle highlighted how former world champions Gerwyn Price and Phil Taylor have felt a similar strain, saying: 'It is not a rarity for the Premier League to become too much. Week after week, it is an endurance test. Sometimes you can feel down and if you feel down, you become mentally weaker.' Littler's victory adds the Premier League to his World Championship title, World Masters and UK Open successes this year. He holds seven of the eight ranking titles that the Professional Darts Corporation have, plus the Premier League. Next up is glory alongside Luke Humphries for England in June's World Cup of Darts.
