Littler Threatens Dutch Darts Boycott Over Crowd Abuse

World champion Luke Littler has stated he is prepared to boycott events in the Netherlands if the crowd behavior does not change, following recent incidents at the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam. Littler was subjected to booing and whistling during his quarterfinal match against Nathan Aspinall on Saturday. The referee halted play to caution the crowd about its conduct before the match resumed.

The 19-year-old darts player had also faced similar treatment during his win against Dutch favorite Danny Noppert on Friday. Littler has previously experienced comparable issues in Germany, which led him to stop participating in European Tour events in that country. When asked if he would extend a similar boycott to Dutch events, Littler told Online Darts, "100%."

"If the Dutch stay like this, then I'm not going to do any Euro tours over there," Littler said. "There's just no point in me travelling, wasting my time whilst I'm getting booed. I just want to play my darts, obviously sign autographs."

Littler also indicated that he has not been interacting with crowds that boo him, stating, "The past two nights, I've done nothing, I've just walked off stage and not thanked anyone. There's no point thanking everyone when they are booing me."

This is not the first time Littler has encountered crowd disapproval. He was also booed during his victory over Rob Cross at the PDC World Championship in December. At that time, Littler expressed indifference to the jeers, saying, "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."

Littler is scheduled to compete in the European Championship in Dortmund in October, where he will observe whether the crowd's behavior has changed. He noted the situation with German events, stating, "With the Germans, I haven't been for a long time, we will have to see in Dortmund whether it changes or stays the same."