Darts wonderkid Luke Littler is famously a Manchester United fan but it appears that the teenager’s loyalties stop at chartering a flight to Spain for this month’s Europa League final
Darts sensation Luke Littler has ruled out splashing the cash to hire a private jet to fly him to Bilbao to watch his beloved Manchester United in the Europa League final. United are 3-0 up after the first leg of their semi-final with Athletic Bilbao and could face Premier League rivals Tottenham in the showpiece game in Bilbao on May 21.
Littler, the 18-year-old who became the youngest-ever world champion in January, would love to see his favourite team in a Euro final. But a Premier League darts date in Sheffield is already booked for the following evening – and Luke the Nuke isn’t prepared to spend any of his estimated £1.5million fortune on a private jet to get him to Spain.
Littler said: “I have been looking at flights – but I’ll go only if I’m allowed. Even if I don’t go, I’ll obviously watch it. I don’t think a PJ [private jet] is worth it.”
Warrington-based Littler, speaking to SportsBoom.co.uk, made Premier League history on Thursday night when he beat Dutchman Michael van Gerwen 6-4 in Birmingham to become the player to win five nightly events in a single season since the format of the tournament changed in 2022.
He had earlier beaten Stephen Bunting and Nathan Aspinall to seal Night 13 and collect a £10,000 bonus. United were hammering the highly-fancied Spaniards at the same time and Littler was spotted checking the score in Bilbao between matches and even managed to watch some of the action on TV.
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At one point, a fan in the crowd held up a sign to keep him up to date with United’s fortunes. Littler had previously revealed that his side’s heartbreaking FA Cup defeat to Fulham had inspired him to reach the UK Open semi-finals and eventually win the competition.
He said: “Obviously I am happy, I’m into the final of the UK Open at my third attempt. But in the second break I heard about the Manchester United loss so it spurred me on a bit, won the next five.
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“Then I only needed one leg and I got the job done. Before the game I saw it had gone to penalties, first break I didn’t think anything of it then the second break, then the third session was unbelievable.
“Having that five-leg gap and then you have to go off stage knowing you need to win one leg. I managed to do it. I know myself that my doubles isn’t the best part of me. There’s always room for improvement.”
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