Luke Littler successfully defended his World Darts Championship title by defeating Jan van Veen 7-1 in the final at Alexandra Palace.
Littler becomes the fourth consecutive champion, joining Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Gary Anderson. He is also the first to achieve this feat since 2016, when ‘The Flying Scotsman’ achieved the feat.
This means the 18-year-old Englishman has surprisingly only lost one match on the Ally Pally stage – the 2024 final against debutant Luke Humphries.
Littler’s level in the finals summed up his talent with an average of 106.02, 16 hits in the 180s, 19 hits in the 140s, a 46 percent doubles success rate, seven sets of spins, and an incredible 147 checkout that sealed the victory.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
When Littler took the stage for the World Championship final, John McDonald called the final walk-on.
The tears that flowed as the moment materialized showed what it meant to Littler to accomplish what he had dreamed of for 12 months.
By reaching the final, he became the fourth player to reach three consecutive world finals, joining Dennis Priestley, Taylor and Anderson.
He joins Taylor, John Peart, Lewis, Anderson, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright to win the top award in all darts multiple times, and his record continues to be broken.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Littler wins the 2026 World Darts Championship with an incredible 147 checkout
Littler has won the Sid Waddell Trophy twice in just three tries, extending his advantage as world No. 1 and becoming the latest symbol of his ground-breaking influence on the sport. He is currently a World Championship, British Open, World Match Play, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship title holder.
He is also the first winner of the £1 million prize given to the winner of Ally Pally.
Before the 2026 tournament, the last time they reached the final with a 7-1 record was 17 years ago in 2009, when Taylor defeated Raymond van Barneveld.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Check out some of the most memorable moments from the 2026 World Championships.
Match Story: Littler spins to win 7 sets
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Van Veen had a great finish in the second set, but ultimately lost the set to Littler.
Littler spun an incredible seven sets, winning back-to-back titles and continuing his reign at the top of the world.
The first set was a competitive affair with both players trying to settle in, with each break followed by Van Veen’s impressive 116 checkout to clinch the set in D4 with a bit of double time between both stars.
However, it was in the second set that the final really got exciting.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Van Veen wins the first set of the final
Littler and Van Veen averaged over 110 in a sensational show, and even though the Dutchman took checkouts at 127 and 145 to take the sets to the decider, Littler pinned 112 on top to tie the score at one set each.
Littler won six legs on the spin to take a 3-1 lead, and even though he had time on his side, he went for the “big fish” in the deciding leg of the third set, posting a 116 checkout and a 112 checkout in the fourth set, making Van Veen’s near-100 average score look uncompetitive when compared to 115.68 in the third set.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Littler won the third set of the World Championship final with this 170 finish.
After just four sets, there was an amazing checkout of over six tons between the finalists.
Van Veen’s body language began to show frustration, and even a 137 checkout to preserve his throws could not stop Littler from making another breakthrough, and Littler’s scoring average of over 107 set him apart.
Despite the rude interruption caused by the return of Ally Parry Hornet, Littler managed to maintain that level, with the audience clamoring for the creature while Littler ran around the stage trying to chase away Ally Parry Hornet.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Ally Parry Wasp appears in the World Championship Finals
The Dutch No. 1 player played well, but fell just short of Littler’s score and double, and also the fact that he didn’t take advantage of the rare chances he was given, leading to a 5-1 lead twice early.
Needing one more set to break the winning streak, Littler won an incredible nine legs in a row, but two 180s in the final leg of the seventh set weren’t enough to get the Dutchman back into the contest.
There was also a bizarre moment when Van Veen’s fingers bled, forcing him to change boards. Again, Littler is unfazed.
Littler then capped off his historic moment in amazing fashion with a 147 finish in D15, and the celebration began with tears in his eyes.
Littler: It was so good the first time I had to do it twice!
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Littler shares his reaction after retaining world title
Two-time world champion Luke Littler told Sky Sports Darts:
“It feels great. First of all, I want to thank John MacDonald and John Noble. What an amazing career they’ve had. Russ Bray retired in my first year and now these two are legends! I’m a little late to the party!”
“I wanted to say this: We all know what happened to Anthony Joshua and his guys, his team and his friends.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
“You never know, that’s why this is special,” says Wayne Mardle, reflecting on Littler’s back-to-back World Darts Championship titles.
“Like AJ said, ‘The first time was so good, I wanted to do it twice!'”
“I started playing well in the second set. I wasn’t satisfied until the break in the first set, but I had to kick from there.
“I said to myself, ‘Give it time, you’ll find it.’ I started on the left side of Oce and moved to the right side. Everything went according to plan.
“Gian, what a tournament. He seems so happy. Every set he was there behind me. I had to take my chances.”
Van Veen: I felt pressure at every moment!
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Van Veen admits ‘too many opportunities were missed’
Speaking to Sky Sports after the final, Van Veen said:
“No, he definitely wasn’t in the mood to give me any more chances. He played phenomenally. He pressured me every leg, every set, and I missed too many chances to get into the match.
“He’s a great player and that’s why he’s number one in the world by a wide margin right now. That’s why he’s a back-to-back world champion.
“I wanted to win the title, I wanted Luke to fight, but I didn’t. I lost too much of my leg, I missed too many chances. Looking back on this tournament, I’m very proud to have reached the final. I’m number 3 in the world and number 1 in the Netherlands.”
“We are very proud of this accomplishment, but also disappointed.”
What’s next?
The 2026 Premier League Darts line-up will be announced live on Sky Sports News from 3.30pm on Monday 5 January, with no changes to this season’s competition format.
The top four players in the PDC Order of Merit (Littler, Humphries, Van Veen and Van Gerwen) will be joined by four wildcard picks to complete the line-up for the 16-week regular season, which will be played across the UK and Europe, with the top four in the standings advancing to Final Night at London’s O2.
Stay up to date with the 2026 darts schedule. You can also stream darts and other top sports on NOW.
