It was once the preserve of smoky clubs and pubs.
But the explosion in popularity of darts, which sees nearly 100,000 people attend the World Championship, is a boom that few other sports can match over the past decade.
And according to Entain, the gambling giant that owns brands like Coral and Ladbrokes, that has been reflected in a surge of interest in darts betting – with some tournaments witnessing as many as 92% more bets placed that just seven years ago.
Hitting the Bullseye
Entain have opened up their files to offer a glimpse into how popular darts has become with punters.
According to the betting industry behemoth, the total number of bets placed on darts with their bookmaking firms has increased by 38% since 2018.
However, when looking at individual tournament wagering, the number of bets taken on the World Championship has risen by a whopping 92%.
Other notable increases at the tournament level include the Ladbrokes sponsored UK Open, which sees 41% more bets now than it did seven years ago, the World Grand Prix (up 32%) and the Premier League (up 22%).
As for the types of bets that have witnessed the most significant increase in interest, match winner accas and same game multis – match winner, most 180s and highest checkout – are amongst the most popular selections.
It’s unlikely that the rise and rise of darts will slow any time soon either, with new TV deals for Sky Sports – a £125 million investment that will carry them through to 2030 – and ITV ensuring that the sport will remain available to both Freeview and paid-for viewers for years ahead.
The Nuke Explodes
One young, unassuming man from the north of England is primarily responsible for the piqued interest of punters in the arrers.
Luke Littler has appeared in the last two World Championship finals – winning in his second appearance in January, has landed a suite of major trophies and ascended to world number one… all within his second season as a PDC Tour pro.
Darts’ rise in popularity has been inextricably linked to Littler’s climb up the world rankings, whose World Championship final against Luke Humphries in January 2024 was watched by 4.8 million people – Sky Sports’ biggest ever audience for a non-football event.
Tickets are like gold dust for the PDC’s blue riband tournaments, with the World Championship selling out in record time ahead of the 2025-26 edition, which kicks off in December and runs through until early January.
As Entain’s CEO, Stella David, notes:
“The Littler Effect, other rising stars like Beau Greaves, and greater accessibility have transformed darts into a global phenomenon – and our sportsbook data proves it. Viewership has surged and betting engagement mirrors this.
“As a huge fan myself, it’s great to see what was once a niche sport now driving some of the fastest growth in the industry.”
Luke and Learn
For decades, Cool Hand Luke and Luke Skywalker have been the most famous Lukes on the planet.
But their supremacy is rapidly in danger as Luke Littler and Luke Humphries, by far and away the best players in world darts right now, continue to reach new heights.
They have met in three major finals already in 2025, with Littler besting his namesake in the World Grand Prix and Grand Slam after Humphries had prevailed in the Premier League final back in May.
Of the ranked majors, Littler has won five of the seven titles available so far in 2025, averaging more than 100 in the final of each – confirming his status as the best player on the planet and, bizarrely for an 18-year-old, as one of the greatest ever to pick up a dart.
Given that the pair will be seeded one and two, there’s every chance that Littler and Humphries will meet in the final of the World Championship on January 3; an outcome that is heavily fancied by the bookies.
In TV events played since July 1, Littler is the only player with a combined average of over 100, with Humphries third in the standings at 98.54.
The meat in the sandwich is Gian van Veen, who has averaged 99.52 in TV events in that timeframe and could be the man most likely to halt the two Lukes in their tracks.
Van Veen defeated Humphries in the final of the European Championship, one of the PDC’s eight ranked majors, in October and has beaten Littler before… could the young Dutchman be the pick of the World Championship betting value at 12/1?