The biggest bet ever placed was made by world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather in 2013. He placed a $5.9 million bet on the Miami Heat to win over the Indiana Pacers in the seventh game of the season.
The Miami Heat won the game with 99 points against 76 points of the Indiana Pacers after four quarters of the NBA Game 7. That means Floyd Mayweather won a whopping $6.49 million in betting profits.
Mayweather has also been known to bet on sports, including boxing and basketball. In 2017, he reportedly won $2.2 million after betting on the Super Bowl.
The Biggest Bets Ever Placed
William Lee Bergstrom, The Phantom Gambler
A man entered a casino in Las Vegas in 1980 carrying a suitcase filled with $770,000 ($2.7 million today) in cash. He bet everything—possibly the largest wager ever made at the time—on a roll of dice at a craps table, won, and then quietly left the casino, stuffing his winnings into the trunk of his car.
William Lee Bergstrom made another appearance in Las Vegas four years later as the legend surrounding the Phantom Gambler had already spread far and wide. He returned to the same Binion’s Casino, wagered $538,000 ($1.3 million today), again won, and then quickly cashed out his chips and left.
The Unknown British Political Punter
One of the various advantages of merging local and global gambling markets is the spreading out to sports betting to cover everything from local dart matches to the most banal weather events and even results of elections. That’s partly thanks to the internet for expanding the global reach and communications.
The UK’s 2014 referendum on Scottish independence was one such political event that generated a great deal of speculative media coverage.
One courageous anonymous tipster bet $1,235,000 (£900,000) on a negative result. The Scottish people confidently responded “no,” and the gambler received $265,000 (£193,000) as the payout.
Ashley Revell, The Man Who Risked It All
Massive wagers pay reasonably well when it comes to gambling, especially if the bet attracts nearly 50-50 odds. Case in point is the juicy story of Ashley Revell, a gambler with balls of steel. Born and bred in Kent’s rustic village of Maidstone in the early 1970s, Ashley put everything he had on the line to bet on just one spin of a roulette wheel. The idea hit him while having a good time with friends at a local pub in Kent.
One of Ashley Revell’s friends casually suggested that it wouldn’t be superb if they sold everything they had and risked it all in Vegas? Although the friend was joking, Ashley took it seriously, selling his expensive golf clubs, lavish watch, car, and other belongings. After arranging a car boot yard sale, Ashley managed to raise (including his £10,000 savings) more than £75,000 (~$90,000).
The man of steel wired a staggering £76,840 to the Las Vegas casino, Plaza Casino. He rented a fancy tuxedo and headed for the casino, where he was given a sack-ful of playing chips.
Wouldn’t you know it – Ashley plunked down every last piece of chip on red in roulette. With lady luck dancing in his favor, the lucky punter walked out of Plaza Casino £153,680 ($184,000) richer.
Floyd Mayweather, The Boxer Betting On Miami
The biggest bet ever placed was made by world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather in 2013. He placed a $5.9 million bet on the Miami Heat to win over the Indiana Pacers in the seventh game of the season.
The Miami Heat won the game with 99 points against 76 points of the Indiana Pacers after four quarters of the NBA Game 7. That means Floyd Mayweather won a whopping $6.49 million in betting profits.
Kerry Packer, The Billionaire Gambler
Australian billionaire and media mogul Kerry Packer earned a reputation placing extraordinarily large bets, mostly on a whim. He happily lost millions of dollars at the blackjack and baccarat tables in Sin City and Sydney in the course of hide lifetime. Packer regularly wagered tens of thousands of dollars on a single hand of baccarat or blackjack. In fact, he was known for winning or losing tens of millions of dollars in just a single day of gambling.
What’s more, Packer was well-known for his generosity and eccentricity – especially when it comes to tipping waitresses and croupiers that paid special attention to him. In fact, there was a saying among Las Vegas casino employees billionaire’s lifetime that “nobody called in sick when Kerry Packer was in town” because of how well-known he was for this.
When Packer tried to tip a croupier $80,000 once, she informed him that she would only receive a small portion of the money because all tips had to be combined. The owner of the casino was summoned by an enraged Packer, who was also known to have a temper, who demanded that the girl be fired immediately. The owner did that because he didn’t want to lose the casino’s top patron, at which point Packer gave her the $80,000 and demanded that he hire her again.
What is the biggest bet ever won?
The biggest ever bet of $14 million was won in Las Vegas on November 1, 2017. The anonymous bettor made the huge win after betting successfully on the 2017 World Series game between the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers. Only identified as an under-30 punter from Eastern Europe, the gambler let the bet ride for up to game 6 of the series. He is not the only biggest winner.
Biggest Bets in Casino and Sports Betting History
Here are some of the other biggest bets ever won …
$2.5 million – Vegas Dave placed a $140,000 wager on the Kansas City Royals to beat the New York Mets and win the 2015 World Series.
$1.8 million – 61-year-old British punter named Steve Whiteley placed a $2 bet on a free horse racing ticket and won £1.45 million (around $1.8 million).
$1.5 million – A 29-year-old stable boy named Conor Murphy placed a $75 five-way accumulator bet on a Kentucky horse racing event and won $1.5 million in 2012.
$1 26 million – Fred Craggs, a fertilizers salesman from Yorkshire, UK, won £1 million (around $1.258 million) from a 60¢ bet on an 8-fold horse racing accumulator in 2008.
$1.2 million – James Adducci won $1.2 million after betting $85,0oo on Tiger Woods to lift the golf champion trophy in 2019.
$1 million – The Bingo hall-owner Mike Futter won £800,000 (around $1 million) after wagering $438,492 on his horse.
$800,000 – Former NBA player Charles Barkley wagered $0.5 million on the New England Patriots to win the 2002 Super Bowl and won $0.8 million.
What sport is gambled on the most?
Sports betting has caught up with casino gambling after gaining traction especially in the US. Sports bets now account for 30-40% of the revenues raked in by the entire gambling market, which also entails poker, casinos, lotteries, and other gaming. More than half a trillion dollars (over €500 billion, to be precise) is bet on sports all over the world each year.
That said, soccer is the sport that’s gambled on the most worldwide, while NFL football rules the roost when you focus the lense on the US alone.
Soccer is the largest and most enjoyed sport worldwide, so it’s no surprise it is the most gambled on spot. At one time horse racing ruled the roost but early cash-outs and in-play betting has transformed soccer into a betting monster.
Conservative stats indicate that well over £1 billion is plunked down on soccer in Great Britain annually. We couldn’t get accurate numbers for the global soccer betting industry because of the myriad unregulated markets. But with viewership stats gearing towards billions for big-hit events like World Cup, the true numbers of betting in soccer must be astronomical.
Horse racing is another big hitter.
A few major sporting events that attract large bets…
- World Cup – $136 billion in bets were made on the 2018 World Cup in Russia
- Super Bowl – $7 billion is wagered on the Super Bowl each year
Horse racing – This sport has long been associated with gambling, and throughout most of history, horse racing was the most widely bet-on sport. Horse races are some of the richest sporting events, making it one of the few sports that can be bet on around the clock. Big prize money attracts big viewers and big bettors.
Over $100 billion is thought to be wagered annually on horse races. The largest market is unexpectedly Japan, followed by the UK and Australia. The American racing industry is huge, and now that gambling is legal in some states, it may be a sleeping giant.
- UEFA Champions League
- English Premier League
- Boxing – Another sport that has long been associated with gambling is boxing/MMA. Even though it might be overshadowed by sports like American football, golf, and soccer, it still has a significant following among bettors. The betting numbers for UFC, a close but younger relative of MMA, are on the rise.
- The Grand National
- World Series
- Rugby World Cup
- NBA Finals
- Cricket World Cup
What’s the biggest bet ever paid?
The biggest bet ever paid was $14 million won by an anonymous bettor who placed a wager on the Houston Astros to win the baseball World Series in 2017. The identity of the winner has not been revealed up to date.
What is the biggest gambling bet ever made?
The biggest gambling bet ever made is reported to be $20 million and was made on who will win the Super Bowl in 2020 by an unknown businessman. The lucky punter placed a wager of a whopping $20 on the NFL Super Bowl LVII match between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers. It is not clear if the punter favored the home team or the visitor, but what we know is that the businessman ended up winning oodles of money.
Many other big gambling bets have been made …
- $3.5 million – Mattress Mack on Houston Astros
- $3.5 million – Billy Walters on the Super Bowl XLIV
- £0.9m on Scotland referendum – A Brit who decided to remain anonymous placed a bet of £0.9m ($1.235m) on Scotland to vote Stay in their 2014 referendum. He won.
- £50k on Brexit Referendum – Another Brit, Fred Done, tried his luck on the Brexit vote a couple of years later, in 2016. Done placed a bet of £50k ($64k) that British voters will vote to leave the EU. They did and Done earned a payoff of a £0.5m ($0.64m).
- $2.4 million on TV show Jeopardy – One James Holzhauer placed several large bets on the TV show game Jeopardy in 2018. He won $2.4 million in total after going on a 32-game winning streak. A single Daily Double bet placed by Holzhauer worth $71,000 was one of the biggest bets he made on the show.
- $1m on Grand National – A group of Britons placed a combined bet of $1m on a Grand National horse race in 2019. They got a $4m payoff when their lucky horse won.
What is the biggest bet on football?
The biggest bet on football (not to be confused with soccer) was reported to be $20 million on who will win the Super Bowl in 2020 by an unknown businessman.
The lucky punter placed a wager of a whopping $20 on the NFL Super Bowl LVII match between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.
It is not clear if the punter favored the home team or the visitor, but what we know is that the businessman ended up winning oodles of money.