Luke Littler backed to eclipse David Beckham as teenagers net worth continues to soar

has been backed to eclipse astronomical net worth if his career continues to track in the same trajectory.

Rewind 12 months and Littler was nothing more than a talented prodigy being spoken about within darts circles.

One year later the teenager is the face of a new era for the sport.

From brand deals to TV appearances, Littler-mania has taken darts by storm, with the runner-up reaping the financial rewards.

Having taken home a whopping £200,000 from this year's Alexandra Palace appearance, the 17-year-old backed that up with a cool £315,000 prize for winning the Premier League title in May.

And according to former world champion Dennis Priestley Littler could go on to earn more than ex-Manchester United and Real Madrid star Beckham.

Commenting on , Priestley said: "Luke Littler is still so young and his career could go one way or the other. I just hope he's surrounding himself with the right people who will keep him grounded.

"If they can do that and he can remain at the top of his game for 10 or so years, then he'll be worth more than David Beckham."

Recognising it won't be an easy ride, Priestley added: "However, it's hard for any player to remain at the top for that length of time.

"Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry managed a decade at the top of snooker, but it's very difficult to go on for longer than that. Phil Taylor dominated darts for nearly 20 years but that is not the norm."

Littler still has some way to go if he's even going to match Beckham's cumulative wealth, let alone eclipse it.

It's estimated through a combination of his cross-continent playing career and subsequent business endeavours Beckham has amassed a total worth in excess of £370million.

That's well over 10 times Littler's net worth, which after a stellar year at the oche is currently just over £650,000.

Littler will get the chance to boost that before he turns 18 in January, with the World Championship kicking off in December.

But if he's to make a similar impact to last time and make the semi-finals of the competition, the Runcorn-born star will have to arrest some of the minor problems that have been plaguing his performance lately.

Following his round-one exit against Rob Cross at last week's Grand Prix, Littler has now been knocked out of the last two televised majors without winning a game.