“I’ve got to be up there” – After close call in 2024, can Luke Littler’s dominant 2025 give him the one title even Phil Taylor never won?

Luke Littler has crammed several lifetimes’ worth of success into the first two years of his professional career. Eight major titles before his 19th birthday, a world title, world No.1 status, millions of eyes on his every throw — and yet the award he now openly admits he wants is one that has eluded every darts legend before him, including his hero Phil Taylor.

The BBC Sports Personality of the Year has never been won by a darts player. Taylor came agonisingly close in 2010, finishing second. Littler himself experienced that same heartbreak in 2024 when he won the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year but lost the overall vote to Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson.

Now, after another colossal year, he believes he has a claim again — even if he isn’t convinced it will happen.

“I still won’t win it,” Littler says in quotes collected by The Sun when asked about his chances. “I think Phil finished second. It would be very nice to win it. But obviously when I think of what I’ve won this year, I’ve got to be up there to try and win it.”

Twelve months ago Littler spoke openly about the impact he believed he’d made on darts: booming ticket sales, expanding academies, and a surge in young players inspired by his rise. In 2025, the evidence has only grown stronger.

His Grand Slam of Darts triumph at the weekend — a 16–11 win over Luke Humphries — delivered his eighth major title and further cemented his status as the face of the sport. Within two years of the wider world discovering him, Littler is not just maintaining his level; he is raising it.

That consistency places him firmly in the SPOTY conversation. But the public vote is unpredictable, and Littler knows he will be up against enormous sporting profiles such as Masters champion Rory McIlroy and Euros winner Chloe Kelly among others. Still, the teenager’s résumé in 2025 is as good as any.

The SPOTY conversation comes at a moment of huge career significance for Littler. His Grand Slam triumph did more than add another major to his tally — it officially made him world No.1 for the first time.

“When I won the Worlds it closed the gap between Luke and myself,” he reflected. “I wanted to add on to it and add on to it. But I think now I’m No.1 I want to stay at the top as long as I can.”

The timing creates a compelling dynamic: Littler has finally reached the summit, but the upcoming World Championship will determine how long he stays there. With the winner set to hold top spot for the next two years, the pressure surrounding his title defence is immense — and it adds another emotional layer to his SPOTY hopes.

Littler also hasn’t forgotten his first World Championship final defeat two years ago, still the only blemish in his early major record against Humphries. With both men again in frightening form, their rivalry is likely to shape the next phase of darts.

“He beat me in my first Worlds,” Littler said. “He didn’t have the best game against Peter in the last Worlds and it was Michael in the final. It’s not long away — only 25 days or something.”

That timeline mirrors the SPOTY countdown. His season isn’t finished, and the Worlds remain his ultimate proving ground.

Littler’s self-doubt about SPOTY may be part realism, part humility, but the numbers tell a different story:

Whether that’s enough to sway the voting public is unclear. But if darts is ever going to break through SPOTY’s glass ceiling, this might be the year — and Littler might be the one.

He may not expect it, but he knows he belongs in the conversation. As he put it himself: “I’ve got to be up there.”