DraftKings on Thursday said it has taken a $3.46m bet on the Super Bowl, another big splash of the pot by a flamboyant furniture store owner from Texas.
Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale has made attention-grabbing wagers before that are tied to promotions at his Houston-area stores, notably the 2019 World Series that featured his hometown Houston Astros versus the Washington Nationals.
On Wednesday night, McIngvale flew to Colorado Springs, opened his mobile sportsbook app at the airport, and plunked down his wager on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers getting 3.5 points from the Kansas City Chiefs.
McIngvale wagered and lost $1m on the San Francisco 49ers in their Super Bowl matchup with the Chiefs last year.
According to local media, the bet is tied to a promotion at his Gallery Furniture stores. If customers spend $3,000 or more on certain mattresses, and Tampa Bay wins the Super Bowl, the mattress is free.
Several sources are reporting this is the largest bet on this year’s Super Bowl so far.
“Tampa Bay is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball and led by the greatest football player of all time in Tom Brady, so I am betting big on the Bucs, who have overcome tough matchups throughout this postseason,” McIngvale said in a statement. “The NFL has only seen eight instances of back-to-back champions and none in the past 16 years, so I like my chances going into Super Bowl LV for this trend to continue. DraftKings has been amazing; providing a safe, legal and fantastic customer experience.”
Johnny Avello, director of race and bookmaking operations at DraftKings, described McIngvale as “a great customer and someone we have history with” after taking a “sizeable” wager on the Astros to win the 2019 World Series.
“For Super Bowl LV, Mack is handicapping the game out of pure belief that the Buccaneers can either win or at least cover the spread,” Avello said. “We are not strangers to taking significant action, particularly on one of the biggest sports events in the country. Looking at the way we have booked the Super Bowl so far, bettors are laying -3 on the Chiefs and taking the Buccaneers at +3.5 as fans try to get the best possible line.”
