Leicester Premier League success will be biggest shock in betting history

Should Leicester City win the Premier League having been 5,000/1 to do so with British bookmakers at the start of the season, it will be the biggest shock in the history of betting according to leading betting firm, Coral.

Coral today produced a list of the odds offered on some of the biggest shock results in the history of football, horse racing, sport and politics, and none of them come close to the 5000/1 odds that Leicester have been backed at to win the Premier League title.

Buster Douglas shocked the world when beating Mike Tyson in 1990 but he was just 42/1 to do so, while Joe Johnson’s 150/1 victory in the World Championships in 1986 remains the biggest shock in snooker history.

The biggest price ever offered on the winner of a horse race was 250/1 about Equinoctial who won on 21st November in 1990 at Kelso, while Foinavon at 100/1 in the 1967 Grand National is the most famous horse racing shock result.

Goran Ivanisevic was a 250/1 wild card entry for Wimbledon in 2001 when winning the tournament, and Ben Curtis’s win in the 2003 Open at 300/1 is the biggest shock result in Golf.

“Should Leicester win the Premier League, and they are now 9/4 favourites to do so, it will go down as officially, and by some margin, the biggest shock in the history of betting in this country, and probably the world,” said Simon Clare, Coral Spokesman.

“What is even more remarkable is that we’ve taken over a hundred bets on Leicester at odds between 5000/1 and 1000/1, and explains why we are facing a four million pound loss if Leicester defy history and the odds by winning the Premier League,” added Clare.

“Whilst it took Coral and other bookies over three months and eleven games to start taking Leicester City’s title challenge seriously, many fans of the club and football punters had already placed their faith in, and bets on, the side and are now sitting on huge potential payouts for just a few pounds,” said Clare.

Coral has taken a total of 114 bets on Leicester City at odds between 1,000/1 and 5,000/1 and will lose over £4 million if Leicester City (now the 9/4 favourites) win the Premier League. Here are three Coral customers who have come forward to talk about their bets on Leicester.

· Ryan Wallis, a 29 year old Chelsea fan from Woking, put £4 on Leicester City at 2,000/1 on the Coral website on 16th August.

· Steve Jeavons, a 55 year old Food buyer from Manchester, and a passionate Manchester City fan, had £2 on Leicester at 2,000/1 at the end of August.

· Stuart McLaren, a 44 year old from Liverpool, and fan of Liverpool FC, put £1 on Leicester at 1,000/1 on 1st November.

Coral has also produced a list of some other 5,000/1 shots that help put the enormity of Leicester’s potential achievement in context. Northern Ireland winning the 2018 World Cup is a 5,000/1 chance as is Steve Davis to win the Snooker World Championships this year.

Bournemouth are in 15th place in the Premier League and 25 points off the top yet are only 5,000/1 to win the title, and Coral would offer 5,000/1 on Justin Bieber won day becoming American President, or Joey Essex becoming the next Mayor of London.

BIGGEST BETTING SHOCKS IN SPORT

300/1 Golf:    Ben Curtis winning The 2003 Open

250/1 Horse Racing:  Equinoctial winning at Kelso 21st November 1990 – biggest priced winner in horse racing history

250/1 Tennis:   Goran Ivanisevic winning Wimbledon 2001

150/1 Football:   Greece winning Euro 2004

150/1 Snooker:  Joe Johnson winning the 1986 Snooker World Championship

100/1 Horse racing:  Foinavon winning the 1967 Grand National

100/1 Politics:  Jeremy Corbyn winning the Labour 2015 Leader election

66/1 Rugby:  Japan beating South Africa in the Rugby World Cup 2015

42/1 Boxing:  Buster Douglas beating Mike Tyson in 1990

OTHER 5000/1 SHOTS

5000/1 Bournemouth to win this season’s 2015/16 Premier League

5000/1 Northern Ireland to win the 2018 World Cup

5000/1 Steve Davis to win 2016 World Snooker Championship

5000/1 Joey Essex to become next Mayor of London

5000/1 Justin Bieber to one day become President of the USA
For further information:
Simon Clare 07860 465139