Luke Littler has revealed his stance on any possible move of the PDC World Darts Championship from its traditional home at Alexandra Palace to Saudi Arabia, insisting he would refuse to play if the event were relocated.
The 18-year-old, who continues to take the sport by storm, said the tournament must remain at its iconic north London venue, which has hosted the championship since 2008 and become synonymous with the event.
His comments come after Matchroom founder Barry Hearn revealed that Saudi representatives had expressed interest in bringing the World Championship to the Middle East. Littler, however, believes the sport’s biggest stage should stay exactly where it is.
“I definitely wouldn’t go over there for the Worlds, I think you’ve got to keep it at Ally Pally," he revealed.
Luke Littler believes the World Championships should stay at Alexandra Palace
|PA
Hearn disclosed that Saudi officials had approached him several months ago about hosting darts in their country, but discussions quickly derailed after it was confirmed that alcohol would not be permitted at the venue.
“The Saudis asked me for darts about a couple months ago and I asked them a simple question,” Hearn told talkSPORT. “Can we have alcohol? And they said no. I said well then you can’t have the darts.”
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Hearn stood firm that the event atmosphere must not change if it was to move to Saudi, and with no alcohol being allowed any short-term move appears to have been ruled out.
The rowdy nature of the Ally Pally crowd has long been considered integral to the World Championship’s success and global appeal.
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Barry Hearn has rejected the idea of a World Championships without Alcohol
|PA
Despite rejecting the idea of shifting the tournament itself, Littler will still travel to Saudi Arabia early next year to compete in a PDC World Series exhibition event on January 19–20. The two-day tournament will be staged under an alcohol ban, unlike the main tour events.
“I’ve not seen any money yet but I’m sure I won’t be going over there for nothing,” he said with a smile to SportsBoom.
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Littler also speculated that Saudi organisers could introduce unique elements to the sport, similar to snooker’s recent innovations in the region.
“It’s very good what Turki Al-Sheikh is doing for boxing, but obviously now he wants the darts,” he said. “Maybe he comes up with a golden nine-darter or something — make the double 12, double 15 or double 18 golden. Could even do a golden 170 and make the bullseye golden.”
Luke Littler picked up his first World Grand Prix title on Sunday
| PALittler’s comments were said just before he captured his first World Grand Prix title with a commanding 6-1 victory over world No 1 Luke Humphries in Leicester, adding yet another title to his incredible season.