BetMGM Cheltenham giveaway: First £250,000 winner revealed

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American-originated operator BetMGM has revealed the first winner of its £500,000 Cheltenham Festival giveaway. Steve, a Durham resident, scooped his 50% (£250,000) share of the mammoth prize following a £2 bet on ‘the greatest show on turf’ last week.

The giveaway marked a crucial period for sports betting firms and bettors alike; Cheltenham Festival stands as one of the most popular multi-day racing events in the UK. 

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In an effort to underline the occasion and reward select customers, BetMGM promised to give £250,000 each to two lucky bettors – with qualifying bets starting from just £2. 

For Steve, it was a case of happenstance that an advertisement for BetMGM’s behemoth giveaway popped up on a screen at Sedgefield Racecourse: “I do football and horse racing betting via BetMGM and the first day (of Cheltenham) I was off work and I went to Sedgefield Racecourse with a friend of mine. 

“They had the big screen up for watching the live races, so I had a flutter on BetMGM and I saw it (the £500,000 giveaway) in the offers and thought, ‘why not, you never know!’, which is why it’s a massive surprise.”

The low-cost nature of the giveaway undoubtedly broadened its appeal – with punters across the country getting in on the action. Steve’s experience serves as proof for this fact, as the Durham native outlined himself: 

“I’ve always had a dabble, I’m not a massive bettor but I do like a bit of a flutter. We always have a family day for the Grand National.”

Understandably overwhelmed by the win, Steve continued to explain that the result is yet to sink in: “It hasn’t sunk in, I’m still sitting here thinking ‘is this real?’. Until the money hits the bank, I’ll probably be saying the same.”

Steve is still weighing up his options with regard to spending his newfound resources, having become a quarter-millionaire overnight: “I think some of it is going to go into my retirement fund – I’m planning for retirement and this is probably going into investments to put away for that – but some of it is probably going to go to paying off some car loans and doing a bit of house improvement.”

News of Steve’s monumental profit follows a shock revelation from BetMGM, as the bookmaker announced that the winner of Wednesday’s Cheltenham giveaway did not come forward. Initially, BetMGM planned to dish out £250,000 to two lucky punters on 12 March and 14 March – but this surprising turn of events saw the firm pay out the entire £500,000 on Friday. An unnamed individual claimed the other half of the reward. 

Director of sponsorship at BetMGM UK, Sam Behar, spoke on behalf of the operator following the giveaway result: “After a sensational four days at Cheltenham, which included Wednesday’s feature, the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase, we’re delighted to announce the first winner of our Cheltenham £500,000 giveaway and to have given one BetMGM punter a sensational surprise!

“Steve has become our first winner and we’ve credited his account with an unbelievable £250,000. We think it’s fair to say he never dreamt of backing a winner as good as this one!”