Luke Littler was an unknown a year ago. Now he's making millions and taking darts into mainstream

Luke Littler was virtually unknown a year ago. Now he is making millions, transcending his sport and is searched for more often on Google than King Charles and the British Prime Minister.

That Littler is a 17-year-old darts player who still lives at home with his parents in northwest England makes his rise to fame and increasing fortune all the more remarkable.

It was around this time 12 months ago, with Christmas approaching, when Littler grabbed the attention of Britain and beyond by making an unlikely run to the final of the world darts championship in his first appearance. He was 16 — though could easily have passed for double the age — and seemingly without a care in the world, celebrating his victories with kebabs and filling his down-time by playing video games.

Littler lost the title match but won a legion of fans and brought darts — to many, a beer-fueled pub game — into the mainstream, like in its heyday in the 1980s.