Everything that happens in sports has additional context when viewed from a sports betting perspective. From season-changing injuries to record-setting moments and so much more, the sports news cycle will constantly and significantly affect the sports betting industry.
Our Super Bowl betting buzz file, with contributions from David Purdum, Doug Greenberg and others, aims to provide fans a look at the sports betting stories that are driving the conversation leading up to the big game.
Key links: Early bets | Updated odds | Sports betting home | DraftKings
Jan. 28: Mattress Mack makes $2 million bet on Super Bowl LX winner
By David Purdum
The largest reported Super Bowl bet so far — $2 million on the New England Patriots to win the Super Bowl — belongs to a Houston furniture salesman.
Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale placed the $2 million bet last week on the AFC to win the Super Bowl with Caesars Sportsbook. At 2-1, McIngvale would win a net $4 million if the Patriots upset the favored Seattle Seahawks. It’s the largest Super Bowl bet that Caesars has taken this year as of Wednesday.
Mattress Mack is hedging his bet with one of his go-to promotions at his Gallery Furniture store: Spend $4,000 on a mattress and gear with McIngvale’s Gallery Furniture, and if the Patriots beat the Seahawks in Super Bowl LX, you get your money back on your purchase.
McIngvale, a beloved figure in Houston for decades, turns 75 in February. He has tied such giveaways to big sports wagers regularly for years. In 2022, he won approximately $75 million on bets he made on the Houston Astros to win the World Series, believed to be one of the largest sports betting payouts in U.S. history.
McIngvale has had mixed results on the Super Bowl, otherwise, winning big on Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021, but suffering a multimillion-dollar loss on the Cincinnati Bengals in 2022. He also twice lost seven figures on bets on the Houston Cougars men’s basketball team to win the NCAA tournament.
McIngvale hedges his total exposure with any boost in mattress sales generated by the giveaways. He sat out last Super Bowl recovering from heart surgery, but he’s back this season and siding with the underdogs for multiple reasons. Getting plus odds on the underdog helps with the promotion, but he also respects the Patriots’ personnel.
“I really like their quarterback [Drake Maye], coach [Mike Vrabel] and offensive coordinator [Josh McDaniels], plus Robert Kraft is always there,” McIngvale told ESPN on Wednesday.
Last year, there were no disclosed $1 million Super Bowl bets reported by U.S. sportsbooks. This year, there have been at least two, both of which are on the underdog Patriots. On Monday, sportsbook Circa reported taking a $1.1 million wager on the Patriots to win the game outright at +188 odds.
Jan 26: Tracking the largest bets on Super Bowl LX so far
By Doug Greenberg
The matchup for Super Bowl LX is set with the Seattle Seahawks favored over the New England Patriots to take home the Lombardi Trophy. The biggest single event in American sports always brings out the big bets.
Since the summer, bettors have been speculating on the result of this game, and the wagers will finally settle on Feb. 8. Here are some of the largest bets — by odds, stakes and potential winnings — tracked thus far:
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In August, a retail bettor at BetMGM in Nevada placed three separate $50,000 futures on the Seahawks, as first reported by Yahoo Sports and confirmed to ESPN by the sportsbook. Seahawks to make the playoffs at +185 cashed for $92,500 and Seahawks to win the NFC at +2800 cashed for $1.4 million. The bettor still has a Seattle Super Bowl ticket at +6000 odds that will net $3 million if successful.
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On Monday, Circa Sports director of operations Jeffrey Benson announced that the sportsbook took a $1.1 million wager on the Patriots money line at +188 that would net nearly $2.1 million if New England wins outright.
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DraftKings took a $10,000 futures bet on the Patriots to win the Super Bowl at +8000 that would pay winnings of $800,000.
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In November, BetMGM accepted a $30,000 wager on New England to win the Super Bowl at +2200, a net of $660,000 if successful.
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In late August, Circa took a $100 bet on the exact result of the Super Bowl being Seahawks over Patriots at an astonishing 3100-1. The bettor would win $310,000 if the exacta comes to fruition.
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On Jan. 14, Caesars Sportsbook took a $32,000 wager on the Seahawks at +275 odds for winnings of $88,000; less than two weeks later, it took a $40,000 bet on the Patriots at +260 for a potential net win of $104,000.
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DraftKings accepted a $500 bet on the Seahawks at +65000 to win $32,500.
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At Caesars, a bettor in Nevada placed a $55,000 wager on Patriots +4.5 (-108) for an approximate $51,000 win, while a bettor in New Jersey put in a $36,000 bet on Seahawks -4.5 (-109) for an approximate $33,000 win, according to the sportsbook’s head of football Joey Feazel, who said the wagers came in “within seconds” of the odds going up following the NFC championship.
