Luke Littler 'will take HUGE tax hit' if he wins £500,000 top prize in World Darts Championship final against Michael van Gerwen after 17-year-old lost almost half of his £200,000 prize in 2024

Luke Littler will lose almost half his prize pool after Friday night's 2024 World Darts Championship final against Michael van Gerwen.

Three-time champion Van Gerwen came through his semi-final against Chris Dobey, beating the Englishman 6-1 and tonight he will look to win his fourth title, having last lifted the Sid Waddell Trophy in 2019.

Teenage sensation Littler matched his final opponent's impressive victory by recording his own 6-1 victory over Stephen Bunting, recording an almost unbeatable average of 105.48.

This will be the thirteenth meeting between the couple in just 12 months and so far there is nothing that separates them. The newly established rivals come into the blockbuster showdown tied 6-6 in their head-to-head matchups.

The winner will claim a top prize of £500,000, while second place will earn a comfortable £200,000 payday. Last year, Littler received the latter, after losing to Luke Humphries in the final.

However, how much of these bonuses will the Briton actually keep after the inevitable tax laws?

Littler overcame Stephen Bunting to win 6-1 last night and book a place in the final.

Michael Van Gerwen aims to win his fourth title against the 17-year-old on Friday night.

Littler aims to become the youngest winner of the World Darts Championship final

Littler will have to lose £223,213.60 in tax as well as £12,010.60 in national insurance. In total you will lose approximately £235,000.

This equates to a net salary of £264,755.80, just 53 per cent of the initial jackpot.

The total prize pool for this year's World Darts Championship is a whopping £2.5 million. Only one exit in the first round saw players walk away with £7,500, and their purse would increase if they managed to progress further in the competition.

Dan Squires, commercial director of the investment platform saxhas said: 'Luke Littler's whirlwind of a year has seen his earnings soar, taking him past the £1million mark before his 18th birthday.

'Under 18s have a tax-free ISA allowance of £9,000, meaning they would not pay tax on any interest, dividends or profits made from investments made through an ISA. From your 18th birthday, this allowance shoots up to £20,000, so you should maximize your ISA allowance.

'You will turn 18 next month and are now in a position to think about a range of financial options, including investments and savings for your future. If you invested half your career earnings today, or £500,000, in an index fund yielding 7% a year, you would earn £36,145.04 in interest in the first year alone, about the same amount they earn on average the British every year working full time. job.

“If you left that £500,000 in the same fund for your retirement, at age 65, you would have £13,293,751.87 without throwing another dart.”