Luke Humphries 'fired up' for World Cup quest with Luke Littler

Luke Humphries insists that both he and Luke Littler are "fired up" and "ready to prove a point" as they gear up for a second attempt at attaining the World Cup of Darts crown.

Last year the duo suffered a shock elimination at the hands of Germany’s Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko, who capitalised on the backing of a partisan home crowd by emerging victorious in the second round.

The World Cup is one of the very few tournaments both Humphries and Littler have failed to get their hands on and the pair, who locked horns only a fortnight ago in a pulsating Premier League final, are eager to make amends this year in Frankfurt.

Their loss in 2025 prompted suggestion that the world number one and world number two lacked the chemistry to conquer the coveted pairs tournament, but Humphries believes he and his fellow Luke couldn't be more aligned as they look to claim England's record-extending sixth triumph.

Speaking exclusively to bet365, Humphries said: "I think we're more fired up this year than we were last year.

"A lot of people suggested we were just going to rock up and win it anyway, but me and Luke both knew that wouldn't be the case and we were going to have to really work for it.

"The fans obviously didn't enjoy us playing against Germany and it was tough work. I think as long as we avoid Germany again and it's someone else, we might be able to ease ourselves into the tournament and then once we get on a roll, we'll be tough to beat.

"I'm confident in our ability, and this year we want to prove a point."

England certainly couldn't have asked for a tougher draw in last year's tournament as they were assigned a treacherous second round meeting against Germany, which is where the World Cup has been hosted in 14 of the previous 16 editions.

On whether the PDC could demonstrate some variation with the World Cup venue, Humphries replied: "When you football World Cups or the Ryder Cup, they're always staged at different venues. I think it's fair to spread it round. It's unfair that one nation gets the home support every year, especially in such a big event.

"We do know the German crowds turn up in their tens of thousands every year. But I do believe it's maybe time for the World Cup to be shared around a little bit because there's so many other nations that would love to host it.

"I'm not saying to put it in England, but there are so many other locations that would deserve to host it."