Luke Littler’s global appeal shows no signs of slowing down if his latest appearance is anything to go by.
The newly-crowned world darts champion kicked off his Bahrain Masters title defence in what was his first taste of action since his heroics at Ally Pally.
Littler didn’t have it all his own way during his opening match but proved too strong for Filipino opponent Lourence Ilagan, with a 6-3 victory.
Thousands of fans packed into the Bahrain International Circuit to catch a glimpse of the teenage sensation, however a large section of the crowd opted to leave the event after Littler’s match.
Television cameras showed a large number of empty seats during the next match which saw Peter Wright take on Alexis Toylo.
Nathan Aspinall also took to the stage after Littler’s appearance and it’s fair to say his buoyant walk-on was not as well received by the crowd as it was at the World Darts Championships earlier this month.
Littler himself was forced to overcome spells of loud whistling from sections of the crowd leading to caller Russ Bray having to address those in attendance on multiple occasions.
Speaking after his win, Littler said: “It would mean the absolute world to come back and retain it as the world champion. I’ve already kicked off 2025 the best it can get, but to win two tournaments this month would mean the world.”
The emergence of Littler has played a key role in the growth of darts over the past 12 months.
His rise has helped the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) earn a whopping new £125million television deal with Sky Sports.
It came after the sport’s future on Sky was thrown into doubt with their seven-year contract due to expire this year.
But Littler’s exploits has seen television ratings soar with 4.8 million tuning in to watch him land his first world title against Michael van Gerwen.
It was Sky’s highest peak audience outside of football and Littler knows the impact his journey has had on growing the sport.
“It is good to see the family section full with my darts shirts,” he said after his triumph at Ally Pally.
“I know what I have done for the sport and it’s good for kids to experience Alexandra Palace. Even seeing the darts academy open in Warrington, it is special in my home town.”
The teenager has also benefitted financially from his rise to superstardom.
Littler has now won a total of £1,118,500 in prize money from major events, which jumps to £1,513,500 including all career earnings.
That takes into consideration his victory in Bahrain last year, his Premier League Darts triumph and the £500,000 prize money scooped at the World Darts Championships.
Meanwhile, the Bahrain Masters concludes on Friday with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final all scheduled to take place.
Luke Humphries, who thrashed Bahrain’s Adbulla Saeed, will face Aspinall with Stephen Bunting going up against Chris Dobey.
Paolo Nebrida, who produced the biggest shock of the tournament by knocking out Rob Cross despite being ranked 91 places below his opponent, will play Wright.
Fans will have the opportunity to get another close up of Littler when he faces Gerwyn Price for a place in the semi-finals.
