Luke Littler successfully defended his World Darts Championship title with a 7-1 win against Gian van Veen in the final at Alexandra Palace, becoming the first player since Gary Anderson in 2016 to claim back to back world titles.
Van Veen took the opening set of the final, but Littler responded by winning seven consecutive sets to secure his second world title in just three appearances on the Alexandra Palace stage. The result makes Littler only the fourth player to retain the World Darts Championship, following Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Anderson.
At 18 years of age, Littler has now lost only one match at the World Darts Championship, which came in the 2024 final against Luke Humphries. His performance in the 2026 final included a tournament average of 106.02, 16 maximums, a doubles success rate of 46 percent and a 147 checkout to complete the victory.
Match overview
The opening set featured early nerves from both players, with each recording a break of throw. Van Veen converted a 116 checkout and later secured the set on double four. Littler responded in the second set, where both players averaged over 110. Despite Van Veen producing finishes of 127 and 145, Littler took the deciding leg with a 112 checkout to level the match.
From that point, Littler took control of the contest. He won the third set 3-1, highlighted by a 170 checkout, before recording finishes of 116 and 112 in the fourth set to establish a 3-1 lead overall. After four sets, there had been six finishes of 100 or more between the two players.
Van Veen continued to score strongly, including a 137 checkout in the fifth set, but was unable to convert key opportunities on the doubles. Littler maintained an average above 107 and moved into a 5-1 lead despite brief interruptions during the match.
Needing one more set to retain his title, Littler extended his run to nine legs in a row. Even after a short pause caused by a change of dartboard, he remained composed and completed the match with a 147 finish on double 15.
Records and achievements
The 7-1 scoreline marked the first World Darts Championship final with that margin since 2009, when Phil Taylor defeated Raymond van Barneveld. Littler has now reached three consecutive world finals, joining Dennis Priestley, Taylor and Anderson as the only players to achieve that feat.
He also becomes one of a select group of players to have won the World Darts Championship on more than one occasion, alongside Taylor, John Part, Lewis, Anderson, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright. The victory extends his position at the top of the PDC Order of Merit and adds the World Darts Championship to his existing major titles, including the UK Open, World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship.
In addition, Littler is the first recipient of the one million pound prize awarded to the World Darts Championship winner.
Set by set result
Set one ended 3-2 in favour of Van Veen. Littler then won the next seven sets with scores of 3-2, 3-1, 3-0, 3-1, 3-0, 3-0 and 3-1 to secure the title.
What comes next
The Premier League Darts line up for 2026 will be confirmed on Monday January 5 at 3.30 pm. The top four players on the PDC Order of Merit, Littler, Humphries, Van Veen and Van Gerwen, will be joined by four wildcard selections. The competition will feature a 16 week regular season across the United Kingdom and Europe, with the top four progressing to Finals Night at The O2 in London.
