Back in 2018, the US Supreme Court repealed a federal ban on sports betting. After 26 years of sidelining sports betting to places like Las Vegas and Atlantic City, states could manage their own approach to betting markets. Since then, over half of all US states have opened their doors to bettors online and/or in person.
Unsurprisingly, most Americans have focused their betting activity on their favorite league: the NFL. From fantasy league fanatics to celebrities like Drake, millions of fans nationwide are looking to become the recipient of a next-level payout. But what was the biggest football bet won in the history of the industry?
A New Outlook for Sportsbooks
Even before the ban on sports betting was lifted, ‘punters’, as they’re sometimes labeled, still had access to physical markets on the Strip and in AC, amongst other places. That means that massive payouts have been happening for decades—not only since 2018. While most would assume the biggest win in history is recent, that’s not necessarily the case.
Similarly, some wagers aren’t even placed before the game. In-play or live betting has since become popular, along with bonus bets like those on Oddschecker.com and similar platforms. Back in 2022, for example, one eager bettor placed a $200,000 in-game wager on the Kansas City Chiefs to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship. The Chiefs were up 21-3 with two minutes on the clock.
Despite the ‘sure’ bet, the Bengals achieved a major upset. The bet would have paid out $10,000 in winnings to the bettor. Instead, they lost a small fortune that day. This example highlights one of the more unique elements of the biggest wins in NFL history—not all winning bettors have put hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line. Let’s dive in.
The Biggest Football Bet Won Ever: Mattress Mack
If you’re from Texas, you may have heard of Mattress Mack before. Jim McIngvale is the proprietor of a large chain of furniture stores across the state. He had a huge idea during the 2020-2021 NFL season. As a betting fan with deep pockets, McIngvale was eager to wager on the NFL—but he did so with a business move in mind.
McIngvale decided to offer full refunds to customers who spent over $3,000 at one of his stores if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl that year. As the Super Bowl game approached, McIngvale headed to watch the championship game. In the airport, of all places, he placed a moneyline bet on his mobile phone, wagering $3.46 million on the Buccs winning.
On February 7, 2021, McIngvale became the winner of the largest payout in NFL betting history, bringing home $2.75 million from DraftKings for his Super Bowl LV win. Though a large sum of the winning payout would be paid out to customers who had spent over $3,000 at his stores, McIngvale still considered it a win.
Only two years later, in November 2022, McIngvale attempted a similar coup by wagering on the Houston Astros to win the World Series. Over the course of the MLB season, McIngvale had upped his original $3 million bet to around $7 million—which paid out a whopping $75 million when the Astros took down the Philadelphia Phillies. This makes Mack the winner of the largest bet paid out by a US sportsbook ever.
Once again, McIngvale had to refund customers who had spent over $3,000 at his stores during this period, but still retained the majority of his winnings. On another note, it’s worth pointing out that Mattress Mack has also lost a few hefty wagers, including losing $9 million in bets when the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Bengals on February 13, 2022.
Meanwhile, at Super Bowl LV…
Mattress Mack wasn’t the only bettor looking to capitalize on an underdog win from the Buccaneers at Super Bowl LV. During that same championship match, an anonymous bettor from Nevada wagered $2 million with BetMGM for the Buccs to overcome the Chiefs.
As BetMGM’s VP of trading said, it was a huge relief to the sportsbook, which had received an overwhelming number of bets placed on the Chiefs. It was a landfall win for the bettor, too, who received a $2 million payout for his wager.
The 15-Way Parlay
Here, let’s challenge the idea that only hefty bets can garner truly massive payouts—and that the only major payouts have come in recent years. Back in 2015, Florida resident Tayla Polia was attempting to wrap her mind around point spreads. Her boyfriend was increasingly frustrated with her slow progress in learning—so the pair decided to place a parlay wager.
Specifically, they decided to place a 15-way parlay wager at a nearby betting establishment. The goal was to educate Polia—so neither she nor her boyfriend thought much about placing a 15-way parlay worth only $5. The odds were, appropriately, around 20,000 to 1 for Polia to nail the parlay. (For context, it’s difficult to fulfill even a two or three-way parlay.)
Polia wagered on five underdogs and nine favorites in basic moneylines. Rather than dive into more point spreads, Polia and her partner figured starting with moneylines would be easier. But nobody expected her to take home a stunning $105,000 for her efforts.
The 4-Way Parlay
In November 2023, yet another Florida bettor took their parlay skills to the bank. The parlay consisted of an over/under wager, two player props placed on running back Devin Singletary, and a field goal prop during a regular season match between the Houston Texans an the Cincinnati Bengals.
When the Texans nailed a 38-yard field goal in the fourth quarter, the bet paid out. The original wager had been worth a hefty $500,000, which meant this bettor would be walking away with $5.5 million in profits. Though anonymous, this bettor is one of the most winningest in NFl history.
Last but Not Least
So far, we’ve outlined some of the most insane wins in NFL betting history, including the illustrious betting outlook of Mattress Mack. To round off this article, we’re going to list out a few other notable bets—both of which were placed by notable figures.
- 2001: During a period of major hype for the Baltimore Ravens, Phil ‘Lefty’ Mickelson placed a $20,000 bet on the Ravens to take home a Super Bowl. When the Ravens lifted the Lombardy Trophy later that season, Lefty’s odds of 22/1 paid out for a total of $560,000.
- 2002: The next year, NBA legend Charles Barkley decided to wager on the NFL Patriots, entrusting his close friend and head coach Bill Belichick to deliver. After wagering around $500,000 for the Patriots to win the Super Bowl, Barkley saw a handsome payout of around $800,000 for the win.
