Teen darts sensation Luke Littler has been immortalised with a plaque in the shape of a dartboard at his home in Warrington after being among a host of Northern winners in this year’s Google Year in Search lists.
The 17-year-old was hailed by Google as its most-searched athlete of 2024 in the UK, outranking Olympians and top Premier League stars such as Simone Biles, Lamine Yamal and Jude Bellingham to take the top spot.
The search giant also revealed the most popular searches overall this year, highlighting the top trending people, entertainment, moments, and most-asked questions in the UK throughout 2024, where the darts prodigy also appears third on the ‘People’ list, following Kate Middleton and Donald Trump.
Littler said: “To be recognised in two Year in Search lists is a huge honour. It’s been an amazing year for me personally, and for the sport of darts as a whole.
“I can’t quite believe I’m trending higher than both the Prime Minister and the King in the ‘People’ category—and in a year of such great sporting achievements, it’s a proud moment for me to be the top trending athlete in 2024.”
Staying in the North, the Oasis reunion tour sparked searches for “How to get Oasis tickets”, which was the second top trending ‘How to’ question of the year, while the Gallagher brothers sat at the top of this year’s musicians list, with Oasis tickets also making the trending terms list.
There was also a strong regional TV showing, with Scottish black comedy Baby Reindeer and North West crime drama Fool Me Once taking the top two spots on the TV search list. The shows’ stars Richard Gadd and Michelle Keegan also both joined Littler in the People top 10, as did former Liverpool defender and MOTD pundit Alan Hansen, who was released from hospital in June following a serious illness.
The Euros topped the general search terms list, and “When is the Euros final?” ranked high among the “When is…” questions.
For The Olympics, searches like “How to watch the Olympics” trended, and as the UK headed to the polls, questions like “How to vote in the UK” and “When is the General Election” also surged.
Searches for “How to vote for the UK in Eurovision” also featured in the charts.
2024’s Year In Search Top 10 Lists (UK):
PEOPLE
1. Kate Middleton
2. Donald Trump
3. Luke Littler
4. Keir Starmer
5. Imane Khelif
6. Alan Hansen
7. King Charles
8. Richard Gadd
9. Michelle Keegan
10. Yung Filly
TERMS:
1. Euros
2. Liam Payne
3. Jay Slater
4. Michael Mosley
5. US Election
6. Kate Middleton
7. Baby Reindeer
8. Olympics
9. Oasis Tickets
10. Fool Me Once
LOSS:
1. Liam Payne
2. Jay Slater
3. Michael Mosley
4. Steve Wright
5. Maggie Smith
6. Robin Windsor
7. Donald Sutherland
8. Shannen Doherty
9. Kevin Campbell
10. James Earl Jones
FILM:
1. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
2. It Ends With Us
3. Inside Out 2
4. Dune: Part Two
5. Deadpool & Wolverine
6. Alien: Romulus
7. Gladiator 2
8. Poor Things
9. Madame Web
10. Joker: Folie à Deux
TV SHOWS:
1. Baby Reindeer
2. Fool Me Once
3. The Gentlemen
4. One Day
5. Fallout
6. Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
7. Rivals
8. The Perfect Couple
9. Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office
10. Until I Kill You
MUSICIANS:
1. Oasis
2. Sabrina Carpenter
3. One Direction
4. Dave Grohl
5. Raye
6. Coldplay
7. Chappell Roan
8. Linkin Park
9. Justin Timberlake
10. Cyndi Lauper
ATHLETES:
1. Luke Littler
2. Lamine Yamal
3. Simone Biles
4. Jude Bellingham
5. Adam Peaty
6. Anthony Joshua
7. Ollie Watkins
8. Chris Hoy
9. Cole Palmer
10. Nico Williams
‘WHEN IS…’:
1. The US Election
2. The Budget
3. The Euros Final
4. Coronation Street on This Week
5. Mike Tyson v Jake Paul
6. England Playing Next
7. Traitors On
8. The Solar Eclipse
9. The General Election
10. The World Cup
‘HOW TO…’:
1. Vote in the UK
2. Get Oasis Tickets
3. Watch Fury vs Usyk
4. Watch Tyson vs Paul
5. Make a Pornstar Martini
6. Watch the Olympics
7. See the Northern Lights
8. Block Someone on TikTok
9. How to Make Life in Infinite Craft
10. Vote for the UK in Eurovision
