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Luke Littler is on a roll and targeting a first PDC World Darts Championship after a breathtaking season.
‘The Nuke’ was upset by Luke Humphries in the final of the 2024 edition, sparking a blossoming rivalry between the pair, which could dominate the sport for years to come.
The 17-year-old is ranked fourth in the world entering the championship and filled with confidence. Victories in the Grand Slam of Darts, the Premier League and World Series Finals have been some of the highlights from a glittering year as Littler mania has taken the sport by storm.
A sluggish start was soon banished after a record-breaking final set, including a stunning 140.91 average, to dispatch Ryan Meikle before Ian White was also brushed aside to reach the fourth round.
Here’s everything you need to know about Littler’s next match in this year’s championship and who he might meet further down the line:
When is Littler playing and what’s his route to the 2025 final?
Luke Littler now faces Ryan Joyce in the fourth round on Monday, 30 December.
The order of play has yet to be confirmed but Littler will likely be in the evening session and headline the action by being the final match of the day. If that is the case, we can expect Littler to be on stage sometime after 9pm GMT, with a start time estimated for 9:15pm GMT.
Should he progress, then he would be in the quarter-finals and face either Nathan Aspinall or Ricardo Pietreczko, with 12th seed Aspinall fancied to come through that fourth-round match.
Defending world champion Luke Humphries could then stand in his way should he progress to the semi-finals with the final against whoever emerges from the bottom half of the draw, where three-time world champion Michael Van Gerwen is the highest remaining seed.
How can I watch?
You can watch the PDC Paddy Power World Darts Championship 2024/25 on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel from 15 December, with a live stream on Sky Go and Now TV.
World Darts Championship Format
Final: Best of 13 sets
Semi-Final: Best of 11 sets
Quarter-Final: Best of nine sets
Fourth Round: Best of seven sets
Third Round: Best of seven sets
Second Round: Best of five sets
First Round: Best of five sets
Odds
Luke Littler 6/4
Luke Humphries 3/1
Michael van Gerwen 11/2
Gerwyn Price 16/1
Stephen Bunting 22/1
Chris Dobey 25/1
World Darts Championship prize money
Winner: £500,000
Runner-Up: £200,000
Semi-Final: £100,000
Quarter-Final: £50,000
Fourth Round: £35,000
Third Round: £25,000
Second Round: £15,000
First Round: £7,500
Total: £2,500,000