It’s Billy the Quid as he cashes in on Leicester triumph
Football fan wins £13,000 from his £2 bet on Foxes
A £2 bet on Leicester City winning the Premier League might have seemed a long shot, but it paid off to the tune of more than £13,000 for one football fan.
Billy Bleach placed his eachway wager on Leicester City to win the title way back at the start of the season, when the odds were 5,000-1.
Monday night’s 2- 2 draw between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea means ‘the Foxes’ – with an uncatchable seven-point lead – are the winners and Mr Bleach is set to pick up £13,337.
The 28-year-old farrier from Ham Hill, Snodland, said he was too nervous to watch the game but followed the results on his phone at the Barming home of his girlfriend Kelly Smith.
“When I heard 1-0 to Spurs, then 2-0 to Spurs, I thought ‘Oh well, it will just go down to the Everton game next weekend’, but after it got to 2-2 I was just cuddling a pillow waiting for the final whistle.
“It still hasn’t really sunk in,” he said. “I won’t really believe it until I see them lift the trophy.”
Mr Bleach said he had only been following Leicester closely this year – though he does wear a City goalkeeper’s top when he plays football on Saturdays for Ham Hill Athletic.
Having loosely followed the club the previous season, he decided to give them his backing when they avoided relegation.
He said: “I always like to support the underdogs.”
After a moment of nervousness around Christmas, he had been confident since January that Leicester would triumph.
“What makes it even better,” he said, “is that most of my mates are Spurs fans!”
Mr Bleach intends to put £10,000 away for a rainy day and maybe take girlfriend Kelly on holiday with the rest.
He said: “I might buy my mates a few beers – if they’re lucky.”
On Tuesday, he called into Ladbrokes in Holborough Road, Snodland, where he placed his bet, to thank cashier Chloe Morris, who sold him the ticket.
The win is Mr Bleach’s biggest to date – previously only scooping £1,100 on an accumulator.