World No. 1 Luke Littler breaks down in tears while Gerwyn Price apology adds twist to £350,000 victory

Luke Littler had another dramatic night on the darts stage as he won the 2026 Premier League Darts title, but not before a tense moment with Gerwyn Price grabbed attention at London’s O2 Arena on Thursday. The 19-year-old first survived a tough semi-final against Gerwyn Price. During the match, Price celebrated a huge 170 checkout with his well-known “big fish” gesture while Littler was already preparing for his next throw. The move frustrated the world champion, who immediately spoke to referee Huw Ware. After the leg ended, Ware stepped in and warned Price. The Welsh star then walked over to Littler, apologized, and the two shared a brief hug before continuing the match.Despite Price’s strong comeback from 9-4 down to level the score at 9-9, Littler held his nerve and won the deciding leg to book his place in the final. He later defeated Luke Humphries 11-10 in another last-leg thriller to lift the Premier League trophy and collect the £350,000 winner’s prize. Reports from The Sun and talkSPORT confirmed that Price apologized following the referee’s intervention during the semi-final.

Luke Littler overcomes Gerwyn Price drama before beating Luke Humphries for Premier League crown

The semi-final incident added another chapter to a season that has not always been easy for Luke Littler. Only weeks earlier, Littler had been involved in a heated exchange with Gian van Veen during a Premier League match in Manchester. Van Veen later claimed that Littler celebrated after he missed a dart at double 15. The situation created tension between the two players, and Littler recently admitted they had still not spoken since that disagreement. After getting past Gerwyn Price, Littler faced long-time rival Luke Humphries in a repeat of last year’s Premier League final. This time, the teenager came out on top in a match that went all the way to the final leg. Both players missed chances to win before Littler finally secured the title. The celebrations became emotional shortly afterward. During his interview with Sky Sports, Littler fought back tears while speaking about the difficult moments he experienced during the Premier League season.He said: “After Brighton I came off stage and the incident in Manchester. I was sat at home saying to Faith, ‘I don’t want to do it anymore, just the crowd every week’. I said to her I’m down bad.”As fans inside the O2 Arena chanted his name, Luke Humphries walked over to comfort him. Faith, Littler’s partner, was also seen emotional in the crowd. Littler revealed that criticism and crowd reactions had affected him throughout the season and even made him think about walking away from the competition. In two weeks, Littler and Humphries will put their rivalry aside when they team up for England at the World Cup of Darts.