"The first time was so nice, I had to do it twice": Luke LIttler quotes Anthony Joshua after 'life changing' £1million pound Ally Pally win

Luke Littler has secured his second world title in a row. The 18-year-old Englishman was too strong for Gian van Veen in the final of the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace, winning 7–1 in sets. Afterward, Littler stayed grounded despite the historic achievement and the record £1 million winner’s prize.

“Oh, I don’t even know. It feels amazing,” Littler told Sky Sports immediately after the final. “The first time was so nice, I had to do it twice.”

The final had a brief spell of tension. Van Veen won the opening set and showed why he had reached the final. Littler admitted he was not satisfied early on. “I wasn’t happy going into the break 1–0 down,” he said. “I said to myself, ‘Just give it time, you’ll find it.’”

That moment arrived in the third set, when Littler produced a 170 checkout. From then on, he took complete control. “Yeah, I started playing a bit better from there,” he explained. “I started off to the left of the oche, he moved over to the right, and yeah, it all came to plan.”

Van Veen barely got a look-in after that. Even so, Littler spoke respectfully about the Dutchman. “He can be very happy with himself,” he said. “In every set he was there, he was behind me, and I had to take my chances.”

With the trophy clearly visible next to him on stage, Littler felt the pressure build but stayed focused. “You just can’t think of it too much,” he admitted. “It’s right next to you on stage, but you’ve just got to keep going. And I had to keep going. And yeah, I’ve done it.”

The world title earns Littler the first-ever £1 million cheque in darts. He believes the increase benefits everyone in the sport. “Yeah, obviously it’s life-changing,” he said. “Even for this tournament, for anyone, even the first round was doubled. So obviously everyone’s money has been doubled.”

For Littler, the title also creates a healthy lead at the top of the world rankings. “This win has just increased that gap from Luke Humphries,” he said. “I’m in the clear now for world number one.”

Despite back-to-back world titles, Littler does not sound satisfied. “Yeah, it’s very special,” he said. “But like I said, we’ve got to keep going. We’ve got to keep adding more titles. We can’t stop here.”

He remained realistic about his rapid rise. “Yeah, not a chance,” he said when asked if he ever imagined this future. “I didn’t think it would be anything like it has been. The family and friends have always been there to support me. The sponsors have been there. This is why we’re here — and it’s not stopping anytime soon.”

Finally, he addressed the crowd. “Yeah, unbelievable,” Littler said. “Thank you again. Thank you. Thank you.”