Archive December 30, 2025

World number one Luke Littler was booed during his win over Rob Cross at the 2026 PDC World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.

The crowd vocally supported 2018 world champion Cross during the match, which led to a passionate celebration from Littler after the 4-2 win that booked his place in the quarter-finals for a third consecutive year.

The sound of boos has not been uncommon in recent weeks or previous editions of the World Championship, with crowds supporting the underdog in the hope of an upset.

“I’m not bothered [by the booing]. Really not bothered. You guys pay for tickets and you pay for my prize so thanks for booing me,” the 18-year-old told Sky Sports following his victory.

“No-one wanted me to win but I proved them wrong yet again.”

Belgium’s Mike de Decker, the world number 18 and 2024 World Grand Prix champion, complained on Instagram about the boos after he was beaten in the first round by unranked Kenyan David Munyua.

He said that booing “shouldn’t be something that’s normal or supported”.

Littler said after the match that he may have wound the crowd up too early during his match against Cross.

“They want the underdogs to win, they want the favourites to go out,” said Littler.

“I just had to get it out of the way and get my job done. I think that’s the first time I’ve been at the World Championship and the crowd haven’t wanted me to win.”

“I expect the worst on New Year’s Day.”

Fellow former world champion Michael van Gerwen was also booed in his first round win over Japanese outsider Mitsuhiko Tatsunami.

So, why is it happening so often this year?

“They are looking for the underdog to win, but they’re all going to be underdogs when they play Luke Littler,” two-time world champion Dennis Priestley told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“When he’s up against it… he seems to find the answers. That’s a world star, a world number one and possibly a two-time world champion, which we will soon see in a few more days.

“He’s only a young lad and he’s not been on the scene that long. There’s a lot to learn and he realises that.

Players have previously been encouraged to tolerate the boos rather than complain about being on the wrong side of the Alexandra Palace crowd.

“They’ve got to get used to it because this is what darts is about,” former PDC chairman Barry Hearn told Talksport last year after Scotland’s Cameron Menzies was booed during a defeat by Leonard Gates of the United States.

“It’s a party atmosphere with a world-class sport going on at the same time. It’s a unique mixture that has made us successful,” he said.

While there has been a rise in booing, they have often been accompanied by off-putting whistles from the crowd.

Players including world number two and 2024 champion Luke Humphries have been on the receiving end and after Littler’s win, Sky Sports commentator Stuart Pyke criticised fans who abuse players and whistle during matches, calling them “mindless idiots”.

“We have seen it creep into the sport more and more over the last 12 months,” Pyke posted on TikTok.

“Come and have a great time, enjoy yourself, have a beer, sing and shout, but what are you doing? If you see people doing it, tell the stewards, get them to kick them out.

“It is ruining it for the players, it is ruining it for the tournament and it is ruining it for all the other fans.”

Due to ongoing issues with dead-ball situations at Liverpool this season, Aaron Briggs has left the team.

Following Arne Slot’s team’s 2-1 win over Wolves on Saturday, the team conceded their 12th goal from a set-piece this campaign.

Captain Virgil van Dijk criticized the club for improving after the victory over Wolves.

He continued, “We’ve conceded too many set-piece goals and don’t score enough.”

We need to do better, they say. It’s not even about the first contact, in my opinion, which is at least 75% of the time or even more. The killer is in the second half.

Liverpool has consistently lost the attacking threat from set pieces over the past five Premier League seasons. They combined scored 18 goals from corners and indirect free kicks in 2021-22, averaging 0.47 per game.

Before falling sharply to nine last season, the figure dropped to 17 in 2022-22 and 15 in 2023-24.

Briggs joined Slot’s staff in September after being first sworn in at the start of the campaign for 2024-25.

The rest of Liverpool’s coaching staff will be in charge of setting up the team for set-pieces.

Due to ongoing issues with dead-ball situations at Liverpool this season, Aaron Briggs has left the team.

Following Arne Slot’s team’s 2-1 win over Wolves on Saturday, the team conceded their 12th goal from a set-piece this campaign.

Briggs joined Slot’s staff in September after being first tapped at the start of the campaign for 2024-2019.

The rest of Liverpool’s coaching staff will be in charge of setting up the team for set-pieces.

Rhian Wilkinson, the Wales manager, anticipates Jess Fishlock’s arrival to her coaching staff before World Cup qualifying kicks off in March.

Wales play two games in the Czech Republic on March 3 and in Montenegro at home four days later in order to advance to Brazil 2027.

After ending her impressive international playing career in October, Fishlock says she wants to “give back in any way I can.”

When Wales return to action in the spring, Wilkinson wants the 38-year-old on board.

She’ll likely be on the staff at the next camp, according to Wilkinson, who hopes to have her there for an important reason.

After ending her playing career in the wake of Euro 2025, Wilkinson claims that Kayleigh Barton and Fishlock are “instrumental to the culture” she wants in the national squad.

Fishlock, 39, recently resigned from Seattle Reign, a club in the National Women’s Soccer League, on a new one-year contract.

She made 166 appearances for Wales, the last of which came in a friendly defeat by Australia at the Cardiff City Stadium. She had already given up on her career there.

According to Wilkinson, “I believe Jess could still be playing,” according to the BBC Wales Feast of Football podcast.

Knowing that you have more in the tank, she will have a difficult year because she is aware that she could still represent Wales.

Wales will face Albania in Group B1 World Cup qualifying along with Montenegro and the Czech Republic.

Because Wales is in League B, there is no guarantee that the team will automatically advance to the Women’s World Cup, which could include three stages of play-off preparation.

Although Wilkinson has stated that Wales are just beginning a new four-year cycle that will mark the 2029 Euros, she has also stressed that her team can face challenges for World Cup qualification.

Meanwhile, Fishlock believes that as more young players try to establish themselves with Wales, their future is “very bright” and wants to support them along the way.

Being a member of the group and shaping their future is something I would enjoy, Fishlock said to BBC Sport Wales.

I’d love to impart some knowledge and occasionally a sense of calm.

Wales endured a challenging 2025 after defeating the Republic of Ireland in a Euro play-off in December of that year.

They went 12-game without winning any of their three European Championship games, which they finally came to an end with a friendly win over Switzerland earlier this month.

Fishlock claims that Wales will gain from the “a lot of young children” over time.

They are excellent, she continued, “They just need to take some time to understand what international football is because it’s so different from club [football]”.