Luke Littler all-but guaranteed to win bizarre trophy even if he loses to Michael van Gerwen

Darts teenage sensation Luke Littler is all-but guaranteed to win the ‘Ballon d’Art’ award even if he loses to Michael van Gerwen in the World Championship final.

Ahead of the showpiece event on Friday night, Littler has hit 180 an astonishing 64 times at the Alexandra Palace.

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That puts him 21 ahead of Van Gerwen and Callan Rydz, all-but guaranteeing Littler the most for the tournament.

In fact, the 17-year-old can set the record for the most maximums ever at one World Championship if he lands 19 against Van Gerwen.

That would see him overtake Michael Smith, who hit 83 during the 2022 event.

Last year, sponsors Paddy Power introduced the ‘Ballon d’Art’ award, which goes to the player who gets the most 180s.

The betting company have teamed up with Prostate UK for their BIGGER 180 campaign, which sees £1,000 donated to the charity for each maximum.

An incredible £60,000 also goes to Prostate UK for every nine-darter.

After reaching the final last year, Littler was left to settle for second place when facing world number one Luke Humphries, who also took home the Ballon d’Art.

The award – which is a nod to football’s famous Ballon d’Or – technically translates to ‘Art Balloon’ – making it the subject of ridicule among fans.

The trophy is also absurdly large – but it is all in the name of charity.

Speaking on a video on TikTok last month, Littler revealed his darts have a ‘longer point’ on them which helps him land more 180s than his rivals.

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“I have a longer point because when my darts sit in the board, there’s more room of getting a 180 or a 140, whereas if you’ve got small points they’ll go through the board and then it’s harder to get a 180.”

His technique clearly pays off too, hitting 19 180s against Stephen Bunting in a 6-1 victory to seal his place in the final.

His opponent Van Gerwen also secured a 6-1 win, beating Chris Dobey in the semis.

Heading into the final, Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler is now the favourite to lift the Sid Waddell Trophy, at just 17 years of age.

Van Gerwen is currently the youngest PDC World Champion to date, winning aged 24 in 2014, but Littler is now just a few throws away from that feat himself.

Littler’s rise to stardom has not only planted himself in the centre of the media’s attention over the last year, but has also skyrocketed the popularity of darts as a sport.

Speaking ahead of the final, Littler said: “It’s been an amazing tournament so far. People would say I was looking at the title throughout the tournament.

“After the first game against Ryan Meikle, I have just beat what was in front of me.

“I’ve played a lot better. I’ve won plenty of titles leading up to this. That’s what we do.

“There are majors all year around and I can’t wait for tomorrow night.”

The 2024/25 PDC World Darts Championship final will take place tonight on Friday, January 3.

It will be held at Ally Pally in north London and walk-ons will start from around 8.10pm with the action slated to get under way at 8.30pm.

Tune into talkSPORT for coverage of the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship final from 7pm on Friday, as we bring you exclusive live commentary from Alexandra Palace. Listen via our web player, app, on DAB, or through your smart speaker.