Cast your eyes back a month to January 3. Luke Littler is 6-1 up in sets in a sticky, sold-out Alexandra Palace in the World Darts Championship final against a dejected Gian van Veen.
Only a leg away from back-to-back world glory and £1,000,000 in prize money, the Warrington teenager could breathe easy as 147 was required, and sure enough he arrowed in his final dart on double 15.
Tears were shed and the trophy was lifted, but now the 19-year-old faces his next major challenge of reclaiming the Premier League title, after Luke Humphries pipped him to glory in the final last year.
With a perfect start to 2026 in London, followed by wins in the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters and World Masters, how much prize money could Littler actually get his hands on come the Premier League finale in May?
His profitable year so far…
Following the £1m winnings he claimed just three days into the new year, Littler fell short in the Bahrain Darts Masters as he was knocked out in the quarter-finals by Gerwyn Price, banking £5,000 for his troubles.
Just shy of a week later, Littler returned to his unbeatable form and overcame Michael van Gerwen 8-5 in the inaugural Saudi Arabia Darts Masters, and added another £30,000 to his wallet.
The 19-year-old didn’t slow down in February, as he won his first ever World Masters in style against his closest rival Humphries in the deciding set.
That meant another £100,000, taking his prize money for the year to £1,135,000 already.
But speaking after his World Masters win, Littler had already turned his focus toward the next prize.
‘It’s another one ticked off. I’m looking forward to the Premier League now,’ he said. ‘Another goal is to go and get the Premier League trophy back.’
Darts is the talk of the Toon
Premier League Darts returns in front of up to 11,000 fans on Thursday night at the Newcastle Utilita Arena, with an immediate £10,000 up for grabs for the nightly win.
Each night leading up to finals night consists of four quarter-finals and semi-finals, then a final, where players gain two points for winning their first match, one more for a semi-final win, and an additional two for the night win. All matches are first to six legs.
Then, the four players who rack up the most points in the 16 weeks battle it out between them for the trophy on finals night.
Newcastle hosted week eight of the 2025 Premier League campaign, with – you guessed it – Littler securing the night win, and the £10,000 for his fourth of the season.
By the end of the 16 weeks he had racked up six nightly wins – three more than Humphries, who went on to beat him in the final.
If Littler can secure the Premier League for the second time in his career, following his 2024 win, he would find himself adding a mega £350,000 onto his winnings.
And he could add up to £160,000 on top of that in night wins alone, before the halfway mark of the season. While winning all 16 is implausible, even replicating last year’s performance in the run-up to the final would see him take £60,000 of it.
Back to Butlin’s!
The UK Open is the only event to be played in the middle of the Premier League season, with the final on March 8.
James Wade gave it everything to deny Littler the crown last year, but inevitably the World No 1 resisted his efforts and took home the top prize of £110,000.
With prize money yet to be confirmed for this year’s tournament – again held at Butlin’s Minehead – a similar pot is expected.
With all of that in mind, Littler’s prize money inside the first five months of 2026 could total as much as £1,750,000 if he wins both the Premier League and UK Open.
Who’s new in the Premier League for 2026?
In the world rankings, it’s the top four by prize money who receive automatic qualification for the league, and four wildcards are then chosen by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).
This year Littler, Humphries, Van Veen and Van Gerwen all made it into the Premier League via their ranking.
And the PDC picks were former Premier League winner Jonny Clayton, ex-finalist Gerwyn Price, ‘The People’s Champion’ Stephen Bunting, and debutant Josh Rock.
Last year’s bronze medalist Nathan Aspinall missed out on inclusion, despite his walk-on song of Mr Brightside able to sell a wholesale of tickets all by itself.
Chris Dobey – who famously comes out to Hey Jude – and Rob Cross have also been cut from the lineup, having slipped down to 13th and 20th respectively in the world rankings.
Van Gerwen returns for his 12th appearance in the competition, looking for his eighth triumph, meanwhile Bunting will be hoping for a more competitive run than last year where he ended rock bottom.
Dutchman Van Veen joins with Rock to make up a duo of debutants, and Clayton returns after two years out of the picture.
So we may have lost The Killers and The Beatles, but it’s time to enjoy the sounds of Dutch House – as well as the rousing Johnny B Goode and its lyrics ‘Go Jonny go, go, go’.
Night One of the BetMGM Premier League begins on Thursday February 5 at 7pm in Newcastle, live on Sky Sports.
