Premier League Darts 2026 Roundup - Luke Littler survives Luke Humphries epic in one of the greatest PDC finals ever seen to win the title!
PDC
Luke Littler is the 2026 Premier League Darts champion after defeating Luke Humphries 11-10 in a stunning final at the O2 Arena in London, edging one of the great Finals Night matches after 17 long weeks of action.
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The world number one averaged 111.67, hit 14 maximums and survived a ruthless defending champion performance from Humphries, who averaged 105.60 and forced a deciding leg after Littler had missed a match dart.
With Humphries unable to reach a double from 156 in the final leg, Littler stepped in to clean up 54 on tops and reclaim the Premier League crown.
It was the third year in a row that Littler and Humphries had met in the Premier League final. Littler won their 2024 showdown, Humphries struck back in 2025, and the latest chapter produced a genuine classic as both players traded 180s, ton-plus finishes, missed chances and emotional swings before Littler eventually crossed the line.
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How Littler and Humphries reached Finals Night
Littler arrived at the O2 as the clear leader from the regular league phase after another relentless Premier League campaign. Six nightly wins, 24 matches won and 43 points left him nine clear at the top of the table, underlining why so much of the 2026 season has been framed around the chasing pack trying to live with his pace.
Humphries’ route to London was far less straightforward. The defending champion spent much of the campaign fighting around the cut-off line rather than cruising above it, but his late surge changed the shape of his season. A run of four consecutive weekly finals, including his Night 15 win in Birmingham, carried him to third in the final table with 27 points and ensured he would get the chance to defend his title at the O2.
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That set up a familiar final-night storyline. For the third year in a row, Littler and Humphries would meet in the Premier League final if both survived their semi-finals. Littler won the 2024 final, famously hitting a nine-darter on the way, before Humphries struck back in 2025 to complete darts’ Triple Crown by adding the Premier League title to his World Championship and World Matchplay crowns.
This time, they reached the title match from very different positions. Littler came in as the dominant league leader. Humphries came in as the champion who had been forced to fight for his place. By the time the final was set, though, the wider season had again narrowed to the same rivalry that has defined the Premier League’s biggest night across three straight years.
Luke Littler and Luke Humphries shake hands ahead of the 2026 Premier League Darts final
Littler survives Humphries epic to win Premier League crown
Humphries won the bull-up backstage and made the advantage count immediately, opening the final with a 180 before taking out D20 for a 13-dart hold. He then doubled his lead with an early break, wiring tops for a 151 finish but returning on D10 with Littler not on a finish.
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Littler hit back quickly. After Humphries missed tops for a 3-0 lead and a 134 finish, the world number one punished with a 52 checkout on tops before levelling on D10. A 94 finish on D20 then gave Littler a 3-2 lead and a first break of throw.
The response from Humphries was brutal. He missed the bull for a 167 but returned to clean up 25 for 3-3, then produced one of the most outrageous finishing bursts seen in a Premier League final. A 134 checkout, a 112 finish on D20 and a 121 on the bull put him 6-3 ahead, before Littler replied with an 81 finish for an 11-darter to reach the interval 6-4 down.
The standard barely dipped after the break. Littler opened leg 11 with a maximum, added another later in the leg and finished 41 in two darts for another 11-darter. Humphries restored his two-leg lead on D10 after both players missed chances, but Littler punished missed darts from the defending champion in the next leg to close to 7-6.
From there, the final became a test of nerve as much as scoring power. Littler levelled at 7-7 with an 84 finish for yet another 11-dart leg, only for Humphries to edge back ahead on D10. Littler responded again, taking advantage of an off leg from Humphries to make it 8-8 in 13 darts.
Humphries moved 9-8 up after Littler missed D18 and D9, having earlier wired D16 for a showpiece 132 finish. Littler answered with a clinical 56 finish on D20, then produced one of the decisive legs of the final. He went seven perfect darts into a possible nine-darter, missed T17 with dart eight, but still completed a 10-darter to break throw and move 10-9 ahead.
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The title was not done yet. Littler had a match dart at D20 from 64 in leg 20, but missed. Humphries showed all the steel of a defending champion, taking out 68 in two darts on D4 to force a deciding leg.
Humphries had the darts in the decider and both players opened with 140s, but when the defending champion failed to reach a double from 156, Littler had his chance. A 54 finish in three darts on D20 sealed an 11-10 victory, with both players visibly emotional at the end of a true Premier League classic.
Earlier in the night
Before the latest Littler-Humphries final could take shape, both players were pushed to the very edge by Welsh opponents who almost tore up the script.
Littler looked to have his semi-final against Price under control when he moved 9-4 ahead, but the match suddenly turned. Five missed match darts opened the door, and Price charged through it with one of the great late surges of this year’s Premier League. A 124 checkout on D11 broke throw for 9-8, before he wired the bull for another 124 in the next leg, returned to clean up 25 and forced a decider from five legs down.
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The comeback still fell just short. Littler had the advantage of throw in the final leg, opened with a 180 and eventually pinned D16 to complete a 10-9 win. Price averaged 100.42 to Littler’s 98.47, but the table-topper survived the only number that mattered.
Humphries then had to survive a similar escape act against Clayton. The defending champion led 6-2 and missed two darts to go 7-2 up, only for Clayton to claw his way back into the contest. The Ferret moved ahead at 8-7 with a 10-dart hold, then punished more Humphries double trouble to go 9-7 in front.
Humphries found his response just in time. He broke on D8 to stay alive, produced a 121 finish to force a deciding leg, then survived a match dart from Clayton at D16 before returning to clean up 25 for another 10-9 win. By the end of two semi-finals, both finalists had been one leg from going home, and both had found just enough to keep the third straight Littler-Humphries Premier League final alive.
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Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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- And why should he listen to you?Deduce635807-11-2026
- Ultimately it is a bye for whoever draws Barney. It will be another stroppy and sulky performance once he goes behind. Barney was excellent but really must completely call it a day now.richieburnettrocks07-11-2026
- I'm disappointed he was not able to secure a spot at the Grand Slam. With Carl Sneyd taking care of Daryl Gurney, he would have had to beat Andy Boulton before facing the winner of Sneyd vs Mensur Suljović for a Grand Slam spot. Unfortunately, after beating Filip Bereza comfortably, he succumbed to Boulton, and the board would ultimately be won by the highly inconsistent Carl Sneyd. Since he could instead have been drawn against the likes of Cristo Reyes, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Stephen Bunting, I think once Gurney was out of the picture he would have been favourite to win his board, and it seems like a massive missed opportunity to put 5 grand on his ranking and seal another major TV appearance ahead of the Worlds. The highs and lows of following Raymond van Barneveld!Deduce635806-11-2026
- Probably i will receive a lot of backlash and hate for this reaction, but well, so be it. I am more than sick and tired of those lies of you Barry Hearn. How dare you defend yourself over the back of Fallon’s son! He has a disability and not an illness, so let me correct that for you! I know because I have the exact same disability. I have tried to reach out to Fallon in the past, and offered her to help her and her son, because I was struggling with the same problems, and I understood the boy. I wanted him to have finally someone who understood him. However she told me that she did not want my help, and I have respected Fallon’s choice. I have never asked Fallon for money. They don’t need money in that case. I only ever wanted the best for Fallon and Rory, but I have to be honest about the situation. Fallon should tell the true story and not be forced to tell lies. I don’t hate Fallon, and I don’t begrudge or envy a single penny that she gets, but this situation/case is just not fair. I hate the lies and the dishonesty and injustice. I don’t want Fallon to be hated because there is an unfair disadvantage created. Don’t proclaim your false lies over the back of Rory! I only stand for integrity and justice. I am precisely the one who always sticks up for Fallon. And you don't, you don't give a damn about them. You were never there for them, and now you only want to save your own position! You are just trying to talk your way out of your own bad behavior at the expense of someone with a disability. And to Fallon, I don’t know if this may ever reach you, and you read it, but I want you to know I love you and I love your son Rory very much, I am sorry how things developed and went. I hope you and Harriet are still friends. I am sorry if I were too persistent to you, or you experienced it that way, but it was never my intention. Please understand I have autism as well. As Barry Hearn would say, I am only just a human being too, and I also make mistakes and misjudge things sometimes. I promise you I did everything out of the deepest love and care for you and Rory. If I were you, I should just keep all the money, only please never be dishonest or tell lies anymore for Barry Hearn, or anyone else. I hope you have the best life, and I wish nothing more than the best for you. I have always loved the two of you. Farewell.Hiddo05-11-2026
- She is a professional. If darts is her income, she is a professional. Same as Adrian Lewis, Martin Adams. A tour card just means someone can play on the PDC tour. You could even make a case that Clayton wasn't a professional (until recently I believe) because he had employment elsewhere.BandB04-11-2026
- She's technically not a professional though as she doesn't hold a pro tour card.mr-pablo04-11-2026
- Such a shame that lakeside has been reduced to this. Fantastic venue,and previously a great tournament. Not any morerick6703-11-2026
- Seems to me that the top 16 players pick and choose whatever they want to play. Good,all the money will get spread out more. They get more money from exhibitions than tournaments so let them all withdrawrick6703-11-2026
- Play all legs and the winners split the pot. Luke gets the lot of he wins them all. If your occupation is darts player you can't enter, regardless of ability.BandB01-11-2026
- I'm quite a jaded person all things considered, but to be honest I found Beat Luke Littler to be pretty entertaining. It certainly wasn't seamless, which is to be expected given the lack of precedence, but I actually think the pacing was pretty good, the production was impressive, and there was a good sense of humour and levity to it. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking but one that, for the most part, paid off. I liked the system with the four pots and I think it added to the drama and intrigue. I enjoyed seeing the diverse range of entrants and learning about their backstories. I think the interactivity was pretty clever and well-integrated. The panel was a little incoherent at times; Lee Mack shone however, and his improvisational skills were appreciated during some more awkward interstitial moments. As far as the darts is concerned, it was a shame that the format didn't allow Littler to get into full flow. You obviously don't want him to steamroll everyone but you want to feel like you're getting the full Littler package rather than seeing him struggling to get out of first gear. I will say that his leg against Jayden Walker was very impressive, but it was mostly downhill from there. The attraction revolves around Littler being this untouchable, indomitable force, yet the format doesn't really allow him to fulfil that characterisation. As for Fallon Sherrock, she was mightily impressive and deserved the victory. It is a testament to her unshakeable character that she was able to bang in a 14-darter under such mind-bending pressure. Everything that has been said about the misleading marketing is valid, though they were clear about their eligibility criteria and were able to offload the responsibility somewhat by bringing the viewers into the decision-making process in real time. What is clear though, is that Fallon played the game according to the rules, and she should not be criticised for that, much less abused. I will admit though that it is a kick in the teeth for those true amateurs who committed time and money to the course, and I would also question those who think pub players would have no chance, given that some of Littler's winning legs were dispatched in 7 visits to the board! The great thing about darts is that it isn't so much that amateurs cannot replicate the feats of brilliance pulled off by professionals of the sport, than it is that they simply cannot replicate the consistency of their output, something that this format almost entirely removes from the equation. It should also be noted that, financially, Fallon certainly stands to benefit much less in relative terms from the paycheque than would your average pub thrower, as I'm sure she nets a fair income from the lucrative exhibition circuit alone. What I do hope is that she might use this as an opportunity to really build up a head of steam heading into the new season, as it seems long overdue that she come through Q-School and really take it to the pros on a week-in week-out basis, but whatever she chooses to do, she has certainly achieved enough already for one if not several lifetimes, so who am I to dictate terms? To conclude though, I will state once again that I found Beat Luke Littler to be a pretty enjoyable evening of entertainment. I do feel for the contestants who never actually had the chance to try their luck against the world #1, although I suppose it comes with the format, but all which inevitably raises the question: will Netflix be tempted to do it all again next year? It's hard to say. Whether it would be financially viable, I can't weigh in there. One point I have been making though, and which I touched on earlier, is that the entire concept relies on a public perception that Littler is more or less unbeatable, and that certainly hasn't been the case of late. If the execs had been trying to pitch the show in recent months while Littler has seemed vulnerable, rather than when he was mopping up almost every major title on the calendar, it would certainly be a tougher sell. We will have to see in about 6 months' time whether Littler can still reliably command perception as a near-unstoppable force in darts, and then we'll have a clearer idea about whether we should expect a second helping. Even as a one-off experiment though, and with all the controversy taken into account, I still don't think they disgraced themselves by any means, and that will probably be my lingering assessment of the event when all is said and done.Deduce635801-11-2026