"He even said himself it looks like a good night out": Prince William at the Palace? Luke Littler receives MBE and sends royal invite

Luke Littler is openly dreaming of a special guest appearance at the next PDC World Darts Championship: the presence of Prince William. The English sensation revealed this week that during a meeting at Windsor Castle, he spoke extensively with the British heir to the throne about the explosive growth of darts. According to Littler, the prince even said that the World Championship at Ally Pally sounds like a great night out.

The meeting took place after Littler was officially awarded an MBE last week for his services to darts. The honour marked yet another recognition for the enormous impact the 19-year-old Englishman has had on the sport worldwide over the past two years. Since his sensational breakthrough at the 2024 World Championship, Littler has become one of Britain’s biggest sporting stars.

Receiving a royal honour at Windsor Castle made a huge impression on him. "Turning up to Windsor Castle, it was just like….'how am I here? Why am I here?'. It was a crazy experience. And then you've just got to think about what I've done for the sport," he said as per Sky Sports.

"Obviously they don't usually come to people so young, but for what I've done for my sport, it's been incredible and the notice has been fantastic."

During his conversation with Prince William, the popularity of darts naturally came up. In recent years, the World Championship at Alexandra Palace has grown into a global phenomenon, with sold-out crowds, millions of TV viewers, and an atmosphere that is now famous far beyond the darts world.

According to Littler, Prince William has been following his career for some time. "Prince William said he's been following the journey and we were just talking about how darts has blown up," Littler said. "He even said himself it looks like a good night out, so maybe we'll see Prince William at Ally Pally this year!

Littler then joked that arranging tickets would not be an issue. "I didn't invite him, but if he needs a few tickets I'm sure myself or the PDC will sort some.

Meanwhile, Littler is trying to refocus on sporting success in the play-offs of the Premier League Darts. On Thursday evening, he will chase another major title at The O2 Arena. The reigning world champion, alongside Luke Humphries, is once again considered one of the top favourites for the title.

The rivalry between the two English superstars has dominated the top level of darts for months. The previous two Premier League finals were contested by Littler and Humphries, with Humphries coming out on top last year.

He is also prepared to deal with any jeering or heckling that he receives if Littler has to deal with it. "The only way to deal with it is to put your head down and win - and that's what I've done," he said.

"I've kept on winning, kept on winning, and I've just got to really knuckle down now for Thursday. If it comes at certain times on stage, then the darts have got to do the talking."

Albeit Littler also sees that people may find the Luke v Luke final a bit boring and says the focus though immediately is just Price and nothing else. "If I can make it three finals in a row, I'll be happy, but I'll just try and beat Gezzy first," he said.

"Some people want to see me against Luke in the final, some people might say it's a bit boring now - Luke and Luke.

"But if we're both winning, if we're both getting to finals, one and two, no one can do anything about it. We've shared most majors over the past year or two, but let's see what happens Thursday."