Luke Littler’s Next Match | Opponent, Date, Form and What to Watch

Luke Littler is darts’ world number one and back-to-back World Champion; we look at when the teenager is back in action.

The 19-year-old joined Phil Taylor, Gary Anderson and Adrian Lewis as only the fourth player to retain the PDC world title and capped off an extraordinary year of dominance by triumphing at Alexandra Palace in January.

Littler added a staggering six major ranking titles to his haul in 2025, including the UK Open, World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals.

In doing so, he has leapfrogged rival Luke Humphries to become the new world number one and emphatically retained the Sid Waddell Trophy to become the sport’s first single tournament millionaire.

Upcoming Match Details

Littler affirmed his position as darts’ dominant force by thrashing Gian van Veen 7-1 in the most one-sided PDC World Championship final since Phil Taylor defeated Raymond van Barneveld by the same scoreline in 2009.

He returned to televised action just 12 days later at the Bahrain Darts Masters – where his 83-day unbeaten run in all competitions was brought to an end by Gerwyn Price in the quarter-finals.

Normal service was quickly resumed a matter of days later as Littler become the inaugural Saudi Arabia Darts Masters champion courtesy of an 8-5 victory over Michael van Gerwen in the final.

The Nuke then continued his remarkable spree of major ranking titles by capturing the Winmau World Masters crown for the first time courtesy of an enthralling deciding-set victory over his great rival Humphries in the final, leaving only the European Championship for a clean sweep inside three seasons.

Having sensationally retained the UK Open title in Minehead before going on reclaim the Premier League crown, partner Humphries to World Cup of Darts glory for England and ultimately retain his World Matchplay title in Blackpool, Luke Littler now sets his sights on a landmark maiden European Championship title.

Littler’s next match sees him come up against William O’Connor in Round One in Dortmund from around 8pm BST on Friday October 23.

Form and Recent Performances

Littler has now won nine of the last 11 major ranking tournaments, with only the European Championship missing from his collection.

Having won the World Championship, World Masters, UK Open, Premier League, World Cup of Darts and World Matchplay, the teenager was on course for an unprecedented clean sweep of major titles this year, only for that dream to end at the hands of Jonny Clayton in the World Series Finals.

His unbeaten run in televised ranking competition dating back to last October’s European Championship was then brought to a shuddering halt by Luke Woodhouse in the first round of the World Grand Prix earlier this month.

The two-time World Champion was then beaten by Cam Crabtree in the semi-finals of the World Youth Championship, ensuring he will not be heading to Minehead next month.

How Littler matches up against his next opponent

Littler will be determined to rectify his below-par record in this particular competition, with a first round defeat to Andrew Gilding on debut in 2024 followed by a second round exit at the hands of James Wade 12 months ago.

Doubles have been a particular cause for concern for ‘The Nuke’ of late, and he will be eyeing a marked improvement on his tournament checkout percentage at the World Series Finals.

O’Connor is appearing in this event for the first time since 2020, having featured in all 15 European Tour events this year, reaching one quarter-final in the process.

The Irish number one reached the final of a Players Championship event in June and now comes up against the world’s best player for the first time on a televised stage.

What to watch out for in this match

• Littler won their only previous meeting at a Players Championship event in August
• Littler has lost his last two matches in televised competition for the first time since 2024
• O’Connor’s only win in major ranking competition so far this year came at the UK Open in March

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