Sixteen-year-old Darts Sensation’s Captivating Run Draws Staggering Viewership
Darts sensation Luke Littler‘s captivating run to the World Darts Championship final on Wednesday has drawn staggering viewership figures, on par with live Premier League football, according to Sky Sports television.
The semi-final clash between Littler and 2018 champion Rob Cross garnered a peak audience of 2.32 million, a remarkable 165% increase compared to last year’s semi-final and 106% higher than the previous semi-final record set in December 2017. This viewership was also on par with the record 1.65 million viewers who tuned in for the 2015 World Darts Championship final, when Gary Anderson defeated 16-time world champion Phil Taylor.
Sky Sports noted that the combined semi-final viewership averaged 1.48 million, the highest performance for any PDC World Darts Championship event, including finals. Remarkably, Tuesday’s viewership was “comfortably higher” than the number watching a Premier League match between West Ham United and Brighton and Hove Albion live on Sky.
“Last night Littler v Cross smashed the record with 2.32m audience! Bigger than the Ashes, bigger than the Ryder Cup – let’s break 3 million tonight for the final.”
- Eddie Hearn, Professional Darts Corporation chairman
This young prodigy’s captivating journey has undoubtedly captured the public’s imagination, and the soaring viewership figures underscore the growing popularity and mainstream appeal of the sport of darts.
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