Luke Littler sparked laughs among the BBC Sports Personality of the Year crowd with a joke about David Beckham on Tuesday night.
The 17-year-old is hoping to win the gong, despite Keely Hodgkinson being the frontrunner, following a terrific first year on the darts scene.
Littler attended BBC SPOTY with his parents and was asked whether receiving a text from David Beckham was one of the highlights of his year.
The youngster then joked that the Manchester United icon hadn’t followed him back, with those in attendance left amused.
Luke Littler sparked laughs among the BBC Sports Personality of the Year crowd with a joke about David Beckham on Tuesday night
BBC
Littler was relatively unheard of just 12 months ago.
However, he quickly established himself as one of the poster boys of darts with some terrific performances at the World Darts Championship.
Littler made the final of that competition at Alexandra Palace but lost to Luke Humphries, who is the current world No 1.
He has shown he’s far from a flash in the pan, though, with the darts star winning the Premier League at the first time of asking just a few months later.
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The biggest sports stars do, however, usually remember the low moments more.
And Littler recently revealed he was still haunted by his defeat to Humphries in the final of the World Darts Championship at the start of the year.
“Regrets? Yeah, probably that double two,” he said, referring to when he missed the chance to go 5-2 up.
“I think that just took a sting out of the game. If I’d hit that…that’s the big question, isn’t it? If I hit that, do I go on and win it?
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“But I didn’t hit it. That was all down to me, not thinking about it, not sure what I had left.
“That’s what happens if you don’t take your chance with the best player in the world sat on 28 – he will ping it, like Luke did.
“That is one difference I would make because then I’m two sets away and you never know what might have happened.
“But it wasn’t meant to be. There will be plenty of opportunities at the World Championship for the next 20 to 30 years, but it’s probably the biggest dart I’ve missed.”
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Luke Littler called out David Beckham for not following him back
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On his dreams for the future, he added: “I want to win every Major at least once and be world No 1 – even if it is just for a day.
“I’d leave the sport very happy if I reached No 1 in the world.
“But I am here [at the current World Darts Championship] to win, to prove reaching the world championship final was not a fluke.
“I won in Bahrain, I won on the European Tour, I won the Premier League… that was me saying, I am here, it wasn’t a one-off.
Luke Littler looks smart at BBC SPOTY on Tuesday night
GETTY
“I have had so much going on this year. United have invited me to a few games, I’ve been to the training ground at Carrington as well.
“Meeting Fergie [Sir Alex Ferguson] was mental. I am glad they know who I am.”
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