- Keely Hodgkinson capped off an incredible 2024 by winning the SPOTY award
- Luke Littler was forced to settle for second place with Joe Root third.
- And the 17-year-old jokingly called out Manchester United hero David Beckham.
Luke Littler got a boost ahead of his first World Darts Championship match on Saturday night.
The teenage sensation gets his tournament underway when he takes on Ryan Meikle in the second round at Alexandra Palace.
It will mark the end of a busy week for Littler, who finished second in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year on Tuesday night after being named Young Sports Personality of the year.
The Man United fan made the Salford crowd laugh when he called out his hero David Beckham at the ceremony.
The 17-year-old was asked what his best moment of the year had been – perhaps receiving a text from Manchester United legend David Beckham? “Yeah, he hasn’t followed me yet,” Littler responded, and that was enough to make the audience roar with laughter.
Beckham had sent a good luck message to Littler before his appearance in the final of the last World Darts Championship, where he was defeated by Luke Humphries.
And his wish has now been granted as Littler took to Instagram to reveal that Beckham had now followed him.
Luke Littler amused his fans with a comment about David Beckham at the BBC SPOTY awards
The darts sensation has now revealed that Beckham follows him on Instagram
Beckham had previously shown his support for Littler, but was still waiting for them to follow him.
The 17-year-old shared a screenshot of Beckham’s name on his followers tab while tagging the former England captain and adding heart eyes and raised hands emojis.
In the end, Littler had to settle for second place on BBC SPOTY, as Keely Hodgkinson capped her golden year with a silver trophy and became the fourth woman in a row to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.
The 22-year-old memorably claimed her first world gold medal with victory in the 800 meters at the Paris Olympics in August. And after swapping her pointes for stilettos, she once again finished first when she picked up the iconic silver camera with four-turret lenses at last night’s BBC party in Salford.
Hodgkinson topped the public vote ahead of darts sensation Littler and England’s all-time leading Test scorer Joe Root.
Littler finished second to Hodgkinson in the top prize after his astonishing breakthrough year, which saw him reach the final of the PDC World Darts Championship in January at the age of 16.
Of the Young Sports Personality of the Year award, he said: “It shows how well I’ve done this year.” “I know how big the sport has become and that shows how much I’ve changed it.”