The final league night of the two thousand twenty five BetMGM Premier League arrives at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena on May twenty two and the headline act could decide the last play off berth. Defending champion Luke Littler currently seven points clear at the summit is slated to meet Michael Smith in a quarter final that has become a must win for the former world number one.citeturn8search0
Smith has hovered just outside the top four since March, hampered by patchy doubling and an ankle niggle that forced him to miss the Rotterdam ProTour weekend. He sits on nineteen points one behind Michael van Gerwen and Nathan Aspinall. Victory over Littler would push him into the semi finals and guarantee at least two points possibly three if he reaches the final. Defeat would leave his fate entirely in the hands of others. Littler for his part seeks an unprecedented sixth nightly title and has rel…
Their rivalry has delivered fireworks all spring. Smith beat Littler in Dublin with a one hundred and eight average only for the teenager to exact revenge in Birmingham with a six three win that featured back to back ton plus checkouts. These contrasting styles the rapid power scoring of Smith against the measured composure of the eighteen year old have become social media gold and tickets for Sheffield vanished in four minutes the fastest sell out in Premier League history.citeturn1search1
PDC statistician Christopher Kempf notes that both men dominate the maximums chart with Smith averaging zero point forty eight one eighties per leg just ahead of Littler on zero point forty six. If those numbers translate to the steel city crowd the match could redraw the playoff picture by the time the confetti settles. One thing is certain the roar when these two walk on will test the new arena roof design to its limits.
