Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts: Humphries' world No.1 ranking on the line as Luke Littler eyes title defence
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
How can Luke Littler become world No.1 in Wolverhampton?
The 2025 Grand Slam of Darts is here, and over the next nine days, we will see 32 of the world’s best players duke it out for one of the biggest prizes in professional darts. Check out our darts predictions for all the insights and key stats!
Luke Littler returns to Wolverhampton to defend his crown, and in addition to bagging the whopping £150,000 prize that goes to the winner, the Nuke is also looking to become the world number one for the first time in his career.
The 18-year-old has been sensational this year, and after securing the World Grand Prix title in Leicester last month, he moved to within £52,000 of Luke Humphries, though that gap was extended after his last 16 elimination at the European Championship.
Given that Littler will not be defending any prize money at the 2025 Grand Slam of Darts (since he did not compete in the competition two years ago), any earnings at this competition will be added directly to his current £1,697,000 total.
That puts the teenager in a prime position to overtake Luke Humphries at the top of the world standings!
The equations are simple: If Littler wins the Grand Slam of Darts, he will become world number one. If Humphries does not win the tournament, he will drop from the world number one ranking and Littler will go top.
2025 Grand Slam of Darts: Format, Groups, Prize Money
The Grand Slam of Darts features a unique format, comprising 32 players who are divided into eight groups of four, with each participant competing in three group games. Luke Littler sets off as the tournament favourite with all the best online betting sites.
Group-stage matches feature nine legs, and the top two players in each group progress to the knockout rounds. From the second round, matches increase to 19 legs, and from then on, a massive 31 legs per game will be played for the remainder of the tournament. The groups are below:
| Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luke Humphries | Chris Dobey | Stephen Bunting | James Wade |
| Nathan Aspinall | Damon Heta | Martin Schindler | Gerwyn Price |
| Michael Smith | Martin Lukeman | Luke Woodhouse | Ricky Evans |
| Alex Spellman | Jurjen van der Velde | Alexis Toylo | Stefan Bellmont |
| Group E | Group F | Group G | Group H |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luke Littler | Gian van Veen | Michael van Gerwen | Jonny Clayton |
| Daryl Gurney | Josh Rock | Gary Anderson | Danny Noppert |
| Connor Scutt | Wessel Nijman | Niko Springer | Lukas Wenig |
| Karel Sedláček | Lisa Ashton | Beau Greaves | Cam Crabtree |
The 2025 Grand Slam of Darts has a prize fund of £650,000, of which the winner walks away with an incredible £150,000. However, there is also a chance for others to earn, with £3,500 up for grabs for anyone who wins their group.
- Winner: £150,000
- Runner-up: £70,000
- Semi-finalists: £50,000
- Quarter-finalists: £25,000
- Second Round: £12,250
- Third in Group: £8,000
- Fourth in Group: £5,000
- Group Winner Bonus: £3,500
