The latest instalment of one of the longest-running darts exhibitions in the UK returned at the start of May, as Armageddon XL took place in Leicester.
The event, which is arguably the largest of its kind in the country, started from very humble beginnings, with the first edition taking place in 2012 at Hermitage Leisure Centre in Whitwick, and was headlined by the likes of Phil Taylor, Eric Bristow and Raymond van Barneveld who would take part in eight-player tournaments in the East Midlands.
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The roll of honour would include Taylor, van Barneveld, Michael van Gerwen and Adrian Lewis among others. But, it has always been a mix between superstar names and local interest.
After growing a product that proved to be a consistent success, the show outgrew its home with one last show at the revamped Hermitage in 2022, and made the move to the much-bigger Mattioli Arena in 2023.
That move has again seen healthy growth over the subsequent years, and 2025 saw the addition of Luke Littler as the main attraction, which in turn equated to more people packing into the popular venue on the back of the newly crowned World Champion’s success.
The show has also been renowned for surprise treats for the fans, with last year seeing former Kasabian frontman Tom Meighan performing his own walk-on song live to the delight of over 2000 people, before the rocker played Luke Littler over one leg.
2026 was billed as an XL version of Armageddon, and it delivered in spades, with yet another surprise guest included that stole the show.
Armageddon features a blend of darting superstars, as well as local talent, with doors opening to fans at 3:30pm, where they were greeted with a fanzone with plenty going on, including World Champions John Part, Glen Durrant and Trina Gulliver in place to meet and greet and stop for selfies. The darting side of the show kicked off with an offering from the Winmau Bardon Premier League, with Andy Hibbert emerging as the Champion as he defeated Chris ‘Pugs’ Wickenden 10-8 in the final.
From there, Harry Ward defeated Ricky Sudale 4-2 in a match billed as the ‘Swadlingoat Challenge’ where Ward gained bragging rights in the pair’s hometown of Swadlincote, and Charlie Marshall retained his King of Kings title for a third straight year, downing Pete Burgoyne by the same score.
The main portion of the show produced plenty of memorable moments, with young Kye Courtney getting to take on Luke Littler, and there were wins for Simon Whitlock over Scott Brookes, Stephen Bunting against Kyle Gilding, and Adrian Lewis saw off Wickenden in an entertaining contest.
After Nathan Aspinall took victory against Kye’s dad Andy, a talented darter in his own right, ‘The Asp’ was seemingly without an opponent ahead of the main event section of the lengthy card.
Mystery Darts Star Steps Up
With a challenger found, a hooded figure entered the walk-on area dressed all in black with his face hardly visible. As fans guessed the identity of the mystery person, the strains of Ice Ice Baby then revealed the player to be none other than Gerwyn Price to a spine-tingling roar and reception from the 2,000-plus in attendance.
Price swept aside Aspinall with the minimum of fuss, emerging a 5-1 winner, and with the buzz of that shock entrance still in the fan’s minds, it was main event time.
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Littler v Bunting didn’t disappoint, and it looked as though it could be a short night, as ‘The Bullet’ went 6-2 up in a race to eight, but Littler gave the fans even more of their moneys worth, as he battled back, and took the meeting to a final leg.
It was pure exhibition stuff in the end, as Littler pinned a pair of double fours to take an 8-7 win and then lifted the George Pallett Trophy in memory of the grandfather of Armageddon creator, and MDA Events’ Matthew Ward.
Another fantastic Armageddon event was enjoyed by all, and 2027 promises to be even bigger, with the fans the real winner overall. Check out dartsworldstore.com for all our event tickets
Images: Darts World Events
Originally published in DartsWorld Magazine Issue 594
