“We build them up, we shoot them down” - Laura Woods reminds darts world Luke Littler is still a 19-year-old “kid” after emotional Premier League breakdown

Luke Littler’s tears after winning the 2026 Premier League Darts title have sparked a wider reminder over the pressure being placed on the sport’s biggest young star.

The world number one produced one of the greatest Premier League finals ever seen at the O2 Arena, beating Luke Humphries 11-10 with a 111.67 average and 14 maximums. Yet the defining image of the night came after the final dart, when Littler became overwhelmed during his on-stage interview with Sky Sports.

Humphries, the defending champion he had just beaten, crossed the stage to embrace him as the 19-year-old struggled to get through the moment. Littler had already spoken about the strain of his campaign, including the hostile reaction he faced after the Manchester incident with Gian van Veen, and the emotion of the night quickly became one of the major talking points around his triumph.

Speaking on talkSPORT, Laura Woods said the reaction should remind people just how young Littler still is, despite the extraordinary level he has already reached. “Last night was very special and actually this kid, and I can call him a kid because I’m a little bit older now and I feel like I can see, he is so young,” Woods said. “He is, honestly, out of this world special and last night gave quite an emotional interview about basically saying at some point he was ready to give it all up.”

Littler has been treated like darts’ headline act almost from the moment he burst through at the World Darts Championship, but Woods pointed back to one of the earliest warnings about how carefully his rise needed to be handled.

“When he came on the scene a couple of years ago at the World Darts Championship properly and everyone was like, ‘wow, who is this wonderkid?’” she continued. “Gary Anderson, one of my favourite players, he gave an interview and he was like, ‘everyone needs to be careful with this.’ He was talking about the media, about not getting too much on his back and not hyping him up too much and just kind of letting him be.”

That caution has become more relevant as Littler’s success has grown. The titles, records and weekly exposure have only increased the attention around him, while his every reaction on stage now carries a weight few darts players have had to deal with at such a young age.

Woods argued that the wider sporting culture around young stars often follows a familiar and damaging pattern. “Of course it never works out that way in this country, does it? Because we’re too excited and we love these superstars that come through,” she said. “But one thing we do really badly, I think, is we build them up, we shoot them down.”

Littler’s latest Premier League win underlined again why the excitement exists. He finished top of the regular league table, survived a 10-9 semi-final against Gerwyn Price, then beat Humphries in a final of astonishing quality. It was his second Premier League title, moving him into the exclusive group of multiple winners alongside Michael van Gerwen, Phil Taylor and Gary Anderson.

But Woods believes the scale of Littler’s challenge is not comparable to previous darts greats, because of the age at which he has become the face of the sport. “I don’t know how old Phil Taylor was when he came on the scene,” Woods added. “He was young, but he wasn’t that young and even when Michael van Gerwen started to really hit his stride, he wasn’t this young."

“This is different," she insists. "So, he could go on and dominate for years and years and years, but with it comes the stresses of the Premier League, week in, week out is so demanding. It’s absolutely knackering.”

That was reflected in Littler’s own words after the final. Before breaking down, he described the campaign as a “rollercoaster”, referenced being bottom of the table early on, and admitted he had to pick himself up through difficult spells before ending the season with the trophy.

The Premier League is unlike almost anything else in darts. It runs across 17 nights, moves from city to city, and places the same eight players under weekly scrutiny in huge arenas.

For Littler, that pressure has been magnified by his profile. He has not only been trying to win matches, but carrying the attention that comes with being the sport’s biggest draw while still a teenager.

“It gets to the most weathered darts players, let alone the youngsters, and you might say he’s got a little bit more energy,” Woods said. “He’s probably got a lot more energy, to be fair, but it is a lot. It is a lot to deal with because you’re dealing with all the pressure of social media and when you’re a youngster, I don’t think it’s as easy as us to just go, ‘I’m just not going to go on it tonight.’”

His Premier League victory confirmed his place at the top of the sport. Woods’ point was that the darts world should not forget the person carrying all of it is still only 19.