Luke Littler’s rumoured new girlfriend as text message leaves ex stunned

Luke Littler will make his return to the PDC World Darts Championships stage tonight, a year on from his remarkable breakout campaign.

The then-16-year-old was a relative unknown going into last year's tournament at Alexandra Palace, but was propelled to stardom almost overnight thanks to an incredible run of wins that took him all the way to the final. After beating Brendan Dolan, Rob Cross and his own childhood idol Raymond van Barneveld, Littler was ultimately beaten by Luke Humphries in the final, but ended the tournament £200,000 better off and with an unprecented level of fame.

Since bursting onto the scene 12 months ago, Littler has not looked back, going on to win the Premier League, Grand Slam and World Series Finals in a remarkable 2024 run. Earlier this week, he was also crowned BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year and came close to winning the main award, finishing runner-up behind Olympic gold medallist Keeley Hodgkinson.

Now 17, the darts ace is now the bookies' favourite to win this year's World Championships, leading the odds ahead of Humphries, Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson. He will get his tournament under way during Saturday's evening session as he takes on Ryan Meikle, and is sure to have the support of Alexandra Palace after 'Littlermania' swept across the country a year ago.

A lot has changed for Littler since his breakout tournament, however, with his net worth skyrocketing alongside his public profile. The teenager is estimated to be worth around £1 million and now stands a chance of boosting his fortune by up to £500,000 at the World Championships.

There have also been changes in his personal life, however, having split up with his girlfriend Eloise Milburn who supported him at Alexandra Palace last year. The couple reportedly met while playing FIFA on Xbox, but the 21-year-old beauty consultant soon faced criticism due to the five-year age gap between the two.

After being targeted by trolls, Eloise's mother Amanda and Littler both slammed the "vile" and "disgusting" abuse she had received, with the darts ace expressing his support for her partner.

However, six months later, Littler ended the relationship via text message, with the "brutal" decision reportedly taking her by surprise having allegedly "come out of the blue". Again, trolls targeted Eloise leading Littler to plead with them to stop sending her hateful messages.

The darts star is reported to have now found love again, however, having seemingly accidentally revealed a new relationship during a gaming live stream. While on a stream with popular YouTuber Angry Ginge, a female voice was heard on Littler's microphone, leading fans to speculate that he had a new love interest.

Her identity has yet to be confirmed, as has the exact nature of their relationship, but fans of Littler will be hoping she will be in attendance to cheer him on as he takes to the stage at Ally Pally tonight.