Manchester United legend David Beckham ‘slid’ into Luke Littler’s ‘DMs’ and sent the rising darts star a heartfelt message ahead of the PDC World Darts Championship final.
Littler, who is a United fan, stunned the world with his sensational World Darts Championship run and reached the final of the competition at only the age of 16.
The darts star’s scintillating run even attracted the interest of United players, both past and present, with the likes of Jonny Evans and Luke Shaw messaging him.
However, Littler’s fairytale story came to an end on Wednesday after he suffered a 7-4 defeat to Luke Humphries in a thrilling final at Alexandra Palace in London.
Humphries entered the World Darts Championship final as the favourite and would ascend to world No 1 status after his win against underdog Littler.
The 28-year-old PDC champion walked away with a hefty £500,000 cash prize, while United fan Littler secured £200,000 for his stunning effort at Alexandra Palace.
Littler reveals message from United legend Beckham
All eyes were on Littler after his stunning debut in the competition, having entered the World Darts Championship as the 164th-ranked player.
Speaking on talkSPORT ahead of the final, Littler opened up on his newfound success in darts and how his social media following “shot up” due to his run.
“It has been crazy,” he said.
“My Twitter/X followers have shot up; my Instagram followers have shot out the window.
“I’ve even had messages off David Beckham, Romeo [Beckham], Luke Shaw…”
TalkSPORT presenter Andy Goldstein was surprised that Beckham had been in contact with Littler, who will ascend in the world rankings after reaching the final.
“You got a message from Becks? Was it a DM? What did it say?” Goldstein asked Littler.
Littler, who recently paid tribute to two United players, revealed what United legend Beckham had said to him ahead of his showdown with Humphries in the final.
“I think it said, ‘Well done, once a Red always a Red,’” he said.
“Then Romeo is there [at the Alexandra Palace] tonight and he said good luck.”
Littler’s dream run comes to an end
United confirmed on their official website that the Premier League club have invited Littler to attend Old Trafford after his sensational World Darts Championship run.
Speaking after his defeat to Humphries, Littler insisted that his mission is to win the World Darts Championship in the future after falling short at the final hurdle.
“The one negative was I lost too many legs on my throw, so Luke would break me, then hold and I’d be 2-0 down [in the set],” he said (via BBC Sport).
“Fair play to Luke, he deserves it.
“I’ve got to the final, I might not get to another final for the next five to 10 years, we don’t know, but I can say I’m a runner-up and now I just want to go and win it.”
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