HOW AN 18-YEAR-OLD JUST BROKE A TEN-YEAR RECORD. THE SECRET TO LUKE LITTLER’S DOMINANCE
History made! 18-year-old Luke Littler thrashes Gian van Veen 7-1 to become back-to-back PDC World Champion. Read the full stats.
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Luke Littler just did it again! The teen sensation crushed Gian van Veen to grab his second World Darts Championship title in a row—the first time anyone's done that in ten years. Littler walked away with the Sid Waddell Trophy.
Despite falling behind early, Littler, who has now been in three Ally Pally finals straight, stormed back to beat Van Veen (the European and World Youth champ) 7-1. This win also earned Littler a cool £1 million, a new record for a Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) event.
The 18-year-old was on fire, averaging 106.02 with sixteen 180s and four finishes over 100. He even got a little emotional celebrating his latest big win. His girlfriend, Faith Millar, was spotted crying happy tears in the crowd. He missed a nine-dart finish after a near miss at T20 on his seventh dart, but it didn't matter much as he clinched the title. And get this—he's still only 18!
Van Veen, hoping to pull off an upset, started strong. The 23-year-old hadn't won a single match at the tournament before this year. Still, he took down former world champs Luke Humphries and Anderson on his way to the final.
The Giant, soon to be ranked third in the world, nailed a 116 checkout with 12 darts in the first leg and won the first set. But he did miss a couple of shots at D8 and one at D4. Littler also missed two of his own on his favourite D10 checkout.
Van Veen then broke Littler's throw with a 145 checkout at the start of the second set and followed it up with a 127 to win his fourth leg in a row. But the world's top player battled back, winning three legs straight to tie the score at one set each.
In the third set, Littler averaged a crazy 115.68, managing a 112 finish, an 11-dart leg, and a Big Fish to take a 2-1 lead. From there, the Warrington teen was unstoppable, winning all three legs of the fourth set.
Even the return of the Ally Pally wasp couldn't faze him. The insect buzzed around, amusing the London crowd and bugging Littler, but he kept his focus and blew Van Veen away, stretching his lead to 4-1 while averaging nearly 108 per visit.
Van Veen missed a chance to break early in the sixth set, wasting two darts on D20. And after accidentally cutting his hand, he left a speck of blood on the board. Littler then put on a show, outscoring and outfinishing his opponent to win all three legs again and make it 5-1.
The board was switched, which seemed to frustrate both players because of the blood. But Littler didn't lose his momentum. The Englishman won 14 of 15 legs to extend his lead. Van Veen threw six perfect darts to set up a nine-dart opportunity of his own before hitting T5 instead of T20, disappointing the fans. He then missed darts on D18 and D9, and the score went to 6-1 in favour of the world's best player.
Littler started the final set with a 180 and kept the pressure on, winning three of four legs. He sealed the match with a 147 checkout to secure another World Championship title.
Littler has had an amazing year since his first world title, racking up wins at the UK Open, World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam of Darts, and Players Championship Finals in 2025.
He also won two World Series events and finished as runner-up in the Premier League. Defending his World Championship title was his biggest goal, and now that he's done it, he's the first person to win back-to-back titles since Gary Anderson a decade ago.
RAIDERS PLACE RECEIVER JUSTIN SHORTER ON IR; SIGN HOOSIERS STAR BRADY
With Justin Shorter on IR, discover how new signing Jonathan Brady fits into the Raiders' wide receiver youth movement for 2026.
The Raiders aren’t sitting still; rookie minicamp just started, and they're already shuffling the roster. Right now, some veteran players are basically on borrowed time as the team leans hard into getting younger.
Take Justin Shorter. He’s been in Vegas since 2024 but hasn’t caught a pass in an actual NFL game. Well, his spot just got even more shaky. The Raiders put him on the Reserve/Injured list, which, let’s be real, is never a good sign this early in the offseason. Usually, that sort of move means a buyout could be next so he can test free agency.
There’s a steady influx of young receivers competing for spots, so it’s tough to see Shorter making his way back, even if he heals up. To fill his spot, the team signed Jonathan Brady, a receiver out of Indiana.
Nobody’s really sure what kind of injury Shorter has. If it’s serious, maybe he sticks around and rehabs with the team. If not, we might see him try his luck somewhere else.
As for the Raiders’ wide receiver group, the youth movement is real. Wide receiver was a big need heading into the offseason, but they didn’t do much outside of signing Jalen Nailor and drafting Malik Benson in the sixth round.
Vincent Bonsignore from the California Post pointed out that the Raiders might still look to add more receivers if the current group doesn’t step up. He basically said that the early rounds of the draft went to bigger needs, and now guys like Bech and Thornton Jr. have a chance to prove the team doesn’t have to keep looking elsewhere. But don’t expect the Raiders to hesitate if things look shaky.
Now, about that passing game, it was rough last season. The Raiders finished in the bottom five. But with Klint Kubiak calling plays and Fernando Mendoza hopefully taking over for Geno Smith, things honestly should get better. If Kirk Cousins ends up starting, he’s probably an upgrade, too. And bringing in Tyler Linderbaum at centre will only help.
Chances are, the Raiders will use an early pick on a receiver in next year’s draft. Even though they have a rookie quarterback waiting in the wings, they didn’t spend big at receiver this offseason. Maybe that’s because they don’t expect him to start right away. Who knows. For now, the wide receiver group looks decent enough to get by.
NFL EXECUTIVE NAMES COLE PAYTON HIS "NO. 2 QUARTERBACK" IN THE 2026 CLASS
From 94.6 PFF grades to 4.56 speed, Cole Payton is the Eagles' latest QB project. Analysing his path to the NFL depth chart.
Cole Payton, who played quarterback at North Dakota State, might end up making a bigger splash as a fifth-round pick than people expect.
He’s not just another late-round flyer, either. An NFL executive recently told insider J.L. Canfora that Payton has real upside. The Eagles have done something similar before, so this isn't coming out of nowhere.
Remember Carson Wentz? Philly grabbed him with the second overall pick back in 2016, but Jalen Hurts ended up taking over. Now, some people around the league think history might repeat itself with Payton possibly replacing Hurts down the road.
The executive went all in on Payton: “You know, I believe in that kid. That was my No. 2 quarterback in the draft. And Howie [Roseman] takes him? Come on. He sees it too. Cole Payton, if you bring him along the right way, can start in this league.”
Roseman, the guy in Philly’s front office, was a big part of the Wentz pick. He’s seen his fair share of quarterback changes over the years, and honestly, that might matter this time, too.
The executive didn’t hold back: “All the stuff you hear about Hurts, all the drama and where he is in his contract." You can call me crazy, but I think this kid could take over from him in a few years. They did this with [Kevin] Kolb, even when [Donovan] McNabb was still there. I know how Howie thinks. This kid has a chance.”
Payton had to wait for his turn at NDSU.
Payton rolled into North Dakota State in 2021, known as a strong recruit for an FCS quarterback, straight out of Omaha.
He was supposed to be the next big thing, just like the string of successful Bison quarterbacks before him. But things didn’t break that way at first. Cam Miller, the QB ahead of him, kept stacking up wins and making a name for himself in Fargo.
Miller even beat out Quincy Patterson II, a gifted dual-threat quarterback who transferred in from Virginia Tech. After Patterson got banged up in 2021, Miller took over, steered the team to a national championship, and then hung on to the starting job through 2024.
Patterson left for Temple, so Payton slid into the Bison’s running packages in a spot that Patterson had filled before. And Payton did more than just fill that role. In 2022, he ran for 284 yards and two touchdowns on 38 carries. By the next year, he really took off: 615 yards and 13 touchdowns on 84 carries.
Setback, then a breakout
Payton started 2024 looking like the same kind of threat on the ground, but a shoulder injury cut his season short. He only managed 164 rushing yards and a score on 21 carries before he went down.
Finally, in 2025, his shot as the full-time starter arrived after Miller left for the NFL draft, drafted by the Raiders in the sixth round. Payton made the most of it. He led NDSU to an unbeaten 12-0 regular season, completing 70% of his passes for 2,719 yards, with 16 touchdowns and just four picks. And he still ran wild, with 777 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns on 136 carries.
Now, he’s got a fresh chance in Philadelphia. If you ask people around the league, he’s not just there to hold a clipboard. They're watching to see what happens next.
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