Famous Athletes Who Love to Gamble

01/11/2017

Athletes are used to being the subject of the odd bet or two, but it's not just musicians whom like the odd flutter, some athletes join the betting themselves. Given the huge sums of money at the top level of sport these days, the close link between the gambling industry and sport, and the competitive nature of professionals, it’s not surprising that there are sportspeople who like to spend some of their earnings on gambling. Here are a few famous athletes who love to gamble:

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr is nicknamed ‘Money’ for a number of reasons, one of them being that he likes to place big bets. He’s not shy of talking about it either – in the past he’s shared pictures of betting slips on social media showing an $830,000 stake on the Denver Broncos in 2014. He only ever reveals his winning bets, though, so no one knows how much money he’s lost. He regularly bets five- and six-figure sums on NBA, NFL and college football and basketball, and he even tried to bet on himself before his famous fight against Conor McGregor earlier this year. Mayweather was listed as the highest-paid athlete in the world by Forbes in 2014 and 2015, so he can probably afford to lose the odd bet.

Mario Balotelli

One of football’s most colourful characters, Mario Balotelli is never too far away from the headlines. He’s courted a fair amount of controversy during his career, but sometimes ‘Super Mario’ also uses his fame in a positive way. One of these incidents occurred in April 2011 while he was playing for Manchester City in the Premier League. The Italian striker won a cool £25,000 while gambling at Manchester’s 235 Casino but instead of banking all the money for himself, he shared some of his winnings with a homeless man. A source told The Sun: "There’s a guy he always sees around town with ginger dreadlocks and a beard… He was outside the club in the early hours so Mario handed him a wad of notes after his big win. The tramp couldn’t believe his luck. It was enough to keep him going for months." You bet he couldn’t believe his luck!

Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal is known as a fierce competitor on the tennis court, and he also likes to take his competitive streak playing poker games. He started off just playing with his friends in Spain but then realised he had a talent for it – although not quite as much as he has with a tennis racquet in his hand. The current world number one was signed up as an ambassador by PokerStars and even took part in a few special events against other ‘Team SportStars’ members like Vanessa Selbst and former footballer Ronaldo. Poker provided a distraction for Nadal while he was battling injury in 2014 and 2015, but he’s no longer affiliated to PokerStars.

Shane Warne

Nadal is not the only sports star who has dabbled in the world of poker. Cricket legend Shane Warne is a keen poker player and has competed professionally since retiring from first-class cricket in 2008. His own website states: "I absolutely love playing poker and the nature of tournament poker. It’s something that resonates with me as there are so many similarities between poker and cricket, especially when you have the opportunity to play at an elite level." The Australian has taken part in the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas on several occasions and also works as an ambassador for gambling operator Dafabet.

Teddy Sheringham

Playing card games has always been a popular hobby among footballers, helping teammates to while away the time on those long coach journeys to away matches or at tournaments abroad. One former player who has pursued the hobby further since retiring from the sport is Teddy Sheringham. As a footballer, Sheringham was renowned for being intelligent, calm and clinical – all qualities needed to be a successful poker player. The former England striker has been a regular on the circuit for many years now, accumulating over $300,000 in winnings and competing in World Series of Poker events. Like Nadal, Sheringham has also represented PokerStars and taken part in several charity tournaments. His management career may not have worked out as hoped, but it appears ‘Teddy’ knows how to hit the target in poker. Athletes love competing, they love being challenged and they love the thrill of winning, and that’s exactly why so many of them love gambling.