Luke Littler won the Premier League Darts last week, instantly the first major of his still remarkably young career.
ADVERTISEMENT
James Wade was not there in this year's Premier League Darts, but said he enjoyed Littler's performance. "Well done to him. I am fascinated to see how he gets on in the long format tournaments at the back end of the year."
"I've said it and I will say it again: anyone that doesn't think Luke Littler is good for the game is absolutely wrong. He is attracting sponsors, encouraging people to do exhibitions, getting fans to buy tickets and is promoting the general public to play the sport."
Multiple major winner James Wade is currently 22nd in the world rankings
"All of this will have a positive effect on salaries, prize money, endorsements and appearance fees. There is some jealousy around now and I just don't get it."
Tiger Woods
Wade also makes the comparison to another sport. "Look at what Tiger Woods did for golf. He might have been by far the biggest earner in that sport but everyone else rode on his coattails and he grew the game."
"I'm not saying darts is going to become like golf, but major sponsors look at the noise around a sport and the likes of Romeo Beckham, Marcus Rashford and other celebrity followers of Littler are good, good news for us all."
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.