“He should be idolised here, shouldn’t he?” – Vincent van der Voort questions English fans’ treatment of Luke Littler

Luke Littler came up short in his title defence at the World Grand Prix. The 2025 winner would fall at the first hurdle against an opportunistic Luke Woodhouse who took his chances for a seismic shock in Leicester. Vincent Van der Voort delved deeper into the defeat, believing that something below the surface was not right.

'The Nuke' had his clean sweep aspirations abolished in Amsterdam as Jonny Clayton defeated him 10-4 in the quarter-finals of the World Series of Darts Finals. His doubling let him down in that contest, and against Woodhouse it would prove extremely costly.

Key doubles missed in crucial legs opened the door for Woodhouse to capitalise, and despite both players averaging 82, it was 'Woody' who prevailed, taking out 75 in two darts to send the world number one tumbling out of the double-in, double-out tournament.

It has been a tough period as of late for Littler. The crowd troubles in Amsterdam left a nasty stain on what has been a stunning campaign. Van der Voort analysed this and believed that it could have had an effect on his performance on stage.

"You can see that he's not completely comfortable in it either," he said on Viaplay. "And maybe it's everything together, that he's also just a little bit at odds with the crowd and perhaps with himself."

It was fairly obvious which side the crowd were supporting, making it even more striking as Littler was on home soil, not a foreign country. "It's gradually becoming a bit of an image problem, isn't it? Because you hear it again now: every time he misses a dart, you hear people in the crowd cheering. And this is in England. He should be idolised here, shouldn't he?"

The presenter, Koert Westerman, suggested the different categories the darts fans could be split into. "You know, a venue like this is really great to watch and experience. But you’ve got the darts fans and you’ve got the partygoers. And the partygoers don’t really care what happens on the stage. They’re also often the ones who are whistling and booing. Not the darts fans."

That showcases the shift in darts popularity with more and more casual fans going to events seeking that party atmosphere. "No, a real darts fan wouldn’t do that," Van der Voort stated. "They’re just watching and want to see a good match. They want to see two players playing as well as possible and they want to see a good game."

He drew a comparison. "All those partygoers are also a bit of a distraction. But we saw that in the first year at Ahoy, of course. There was a very different crowd to what there was this year, for example. It’s just changed."

Van der Voort made the point that Littler's nationality may have something to do with this. He commented that if he was from somewhere else outside of England, then the support would be much greater.

"But that’s why you expect that when he plays in England, you know. If we had someone like Luke Littler in the Netherlands, we would say, 'If he was Dutch, he would have become a crowd favourite everywhere.'"

He made contrasts with a certain two-time world champion. "Adrian Lewis had it all the time as well. He’s only really popular now. But when he was playing, he was booed very often too."

The public perception has fully turned on Littler since his debut PDC World Darts Championship run at the age of 16. From that point, he has etched out a legacy capable of matching the greats of the sport. At such a young age, he is the dominant force, and his recent winning splurge at major level becoming a familiar trend.

Overall, Van der Voort was adamant that his greatness and success should be embraced by English darts fans. "So you notice that, you know... Usually, when you’ve got a prodigy like that, a country will really embrace them. Then you’re completely praised and celebrated. And with him, somehow, it doesn’t happen."