EXCLUSIVE Darts fever takes over America as Luke Littler and the world's best bring the party to New York City

Daily Mail​

a day ago

One of Europe's rowdiest sporting events is back on American soil this weekend as New York City gears up for its latest edition of the increasingly-popular US Darts Masters.
The best players on the planet, including teenage world champion Luke Littler, will descend on The Theater at Madison Square Garden this Friday and Saturday as fans across the pond get a taste of the madness for a fourth straight year in the Big Apple.
For a sport once mocked as nothing more than a pub game, largely due to the fact you need virtually no form of athleticism to be good at it, darts is vastly becoming a phenomenon across the world both as a party to enjoy and a spectacle to behold.
While the occasion itself has been a popular tradition in Europe for decades, with fans pulling on fancy dress costumes, swigging beers and chanting the night away regardless of what's happening on stage, the sport is growing in popularity Stateside as more and more American supporters continue to fall in love with it.
The 2023 PDC World Darts Championship final, where British star Michael Smith's memorable nine-darter against Dutch icon Michael Van Gerwen and the legendary commentary which accompanied it went viral on social media, is one reason for the game's rapid rise in the US.
Yet in Littler, who captured the world title at just 17 years of age back in January, darts may have finally stumbled upon its first true global superstar.
The English hero, who turned 18 a few weeks after his remarkable triumph, has emerged as one of the world's top players and an online sensation in an astonishingly short space of time, having only played at the PDC World Championship for the first time a year earlier.
At the time of writing, he has amassed close to two million Instagram followers and built a net worth in excess of $2million. Not to mention the small matter of receiving an MBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) earlier this month.
After being knocked out in the semifinals last year by Welsh star Gerwyn Price, this time around Little will be hoping to go two steps further in New York and win the US Masters, but first he'll have to get past Dutch-born American player Jules van Dongen in the first round on Friday.
When asked by the Daily Mail who he considers his biggest threat this weekend, Littler admitted: 'Not too sure, I don't know who's playing well [in practice] and who's playing bad.
'Obviously for myself in the first round, Jules van Dongen... he's not playing the best of darts, he's been injured for quite a few months now.
'But yeah, I've just got to win that first game and see who I have to play on Saturday.'
Littler is heading into the tournament at Madison Square Garden on the back of a rare humbling, having recently slumped to a shock defeat at the World Cup with English teammate and current world No. 1 Luke Humphries.
The pair were overwhelming favorites to get past Germany in their opening match of the tournament, only to be sent packing after an 8-4 loss away from home in Frankfurt.
The two Lukes were subjected to harsh criticism on the back of the upset, with English icon Dennis Priestley sparking controversy by claiming Littler is undeserving of his MBE.
Yet he quickly hit back at Priestley on social media by writing: 'Don't deserve an MBE but done more in 12 months than he ever did… that's what I would say anyway.'
On the eve of his first-round match in New York, Littler said about the backlash: 'I think everyone's overreacted, it's just a darts game that we've lost.
'We're not gonna win them all, so we've lost and we've got on with it. Then obviously we've replied to whatever nonsense has been said as we should, we're not gonna hold back.
'I do think everyone has overreacted to a game of darts.'
Littler will be one of the favorites to go all the way and claim victory at Madison Square Garden despite that crushing setback in Frankfurt.
Aside from the darts, though, he's been blown away by some of the cuisine on offer in the Big Apple.
'These Americans, the portions they do... Silly, silly,' he gushed.
One of Littler's biggest threats this weekend will be Van Gerwen, who is widely considered one of the greatest players in history.
The 36-year-old ranks second behind only Phil Taylor, universally regarded as the GOAT of the sport, when it comes to major PDC titles with a whopping 47. While he's 32 behind Taylor, Van Gerwen sits a comfortable 36 championships ahead of Britain's James Wade in third.
Maybe one day he'll have Littler to worry about in the all-time standings, with the young world champ destined to carve out a historic career of his own if he continues sweeping up victories at this current rate.
However, earlier this year Luke drew some criticism from his older peer over his professionalism, when Van Gerwen berated others in the sport for 'treating him like a baby' despite now being 18.
'I still stand by that,' MVG told the Daily Mail a couple of days out from his own first-round match at the US Masters.
There is no bad blood between the pair, with 'Mighty' Mike viewing his brutal assessment simply as some necessary words of wisdom.
'We get along fine, but with all due respect I'm old enough to be his dad,' he joked. 'I watch NATO coming to Holland and he's watching the new FIFA game or whatever, so that's the difference.'
Van Gerwen is returning to darts following a month-long break after dealing with a difficult moment in his personal life, having recently split from the mother of his two children. 'Everyone knows it's been hard for me, but more important is that you have to move forward,' the darts great admitted.
Fresh and with his mind now cleared, he is looking to get back to his best after a difficult start to 2025, which also included a thrashing at the hands of Littler in the World Championship final.
Though it's not only Luke 'The Nuke' who could pose him problems in New York.
'Stephen Bunting is doing well lately too, he's done really well in the last few tournaments,' Van Gerwen pointed out when asked to analyze the opposition this weekend.
'Everyone in this tournament is a great darts player, so you've got to make sure you don't make mistakes against any of them. Even against the Americans, because they can play well.'
The aforementioned Stephen Bunting, a 40-year-old veteran from Liverpool, appears to be in his peak years after making it to two PDC World Championship semifinals in the last five and earning his first callup to the Premier League for a decade in 2025.
Along with his fine form, Bunting has become a cult hero in recent years largely due to his much-loved walkout song: Titanium by David Guetta.
His crowd-lifting routine, which sees him walk onto the stage and cup his ears to the crowd while singing along, has gone viral on Twitter (now X) and TikTok at recent championships, turning him into an unlikely online star.
'The walk-on has become so integral now as part of the whole routine. I probably get more nervous doing the walk-on than I do playing,' Bunting said on Thursday.
'But I really enjoy it, the fans get involved and that's where you get your fanbase from. You feel a bit like an orchestrator getting them to sing that song back to you, so it's a special feeling when you're up on the stage.'
As for the honor of playing in such iconic surroundings this weekend, he added: 'It's a lovely city, I've been round and seen a few sights. But I think it'll all get real when we step into Madison Square Garden, a venue I've watched on the TV over the years.
'Some massive sporting events have been there and for me to be able to play there is a huge honor.'
Luke Littler, Michael Van Gerwen and Stephen Bunting were speaking to DailyMail.com on behalf of bet365, the official sponsor of the PDC US Darts Masters.