Drake Locks in Another Six Figure Wager

Nick Makowitz Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

Over the years, Drake has infamously "cursed" several athletes and sports teams by cheering for them or betting on them. His victims include boxer Anthony Joshua, UFC star Connor McGregor, and an ensemble of Premier League and Champions League soccer players.

Naturally, Twitter trolls and talking heads ran with the narrative that a selfie with Drake results in inevitable defeat. It's fun, but is it true? After all, the Toronto Raptors, Drake's hometown NBA team, won the title in 2019. If that doesn't kill a curse, what does?

Drake is a passionate sports fan and perhaps an equally passionate sports bettor. So far in 2022, he's placed a number of high-stakes wagers, and he's usually willing to share with the public.

It started with the Super Bowl, when the rap star put down over $1 million USD combined on Odell Beckham Jr. to score a touchdown, Odell to have more than 62.5 receiving yards, and the Rams to win. Impressively, Drake went 2-for-3 and could've cashed in an even bigger payday had the resurgent Beckham not torn his ACL in the second quarter.

Next, he threw down on UFC 272 (with his wallet) to the tune of $275K USD. Drake was pulling for Jorge Masvidsal to take out Colby Covington in a fight between friends-turned-foes, but Covington won the bout via unanimous decision.

In early April, the self-proclaimed father of champagne was clearly intoxicated by the potential of a storybook ending for Coach K and Duke, as he wagered about $80K USD on the Blue Devils to get past UNC in the Final Four. Duke fell short and Drake fell to 2-3 on his high-stakes, public bets.

Now, he's back with another big one. Drake famously once said "Golden State running practice at my house" and he must've liked what he saw because the rap mogul shelled out about $159K USD on the Warriors to win the Western Conference at +400 odds. A Warriors NBA Finals berth would net the rapper almost $650K USD.

Since he placed the bet, Golden State ran the Denver Nuggets off the court in and seemed to regain much of the offensive electricity that mesmerized fans and players alike during their late-2010s dynasty. In fact, at FanDuel sportsbook, the Warriors jumped to the odds-on favorite to win the NBA title.

If the Warriors represent the West in the NBA Finals, Drake will be up over $600K USD on his most public bets of the year and possibly put the so-called curse to rest. Not bad.

If Golden State falters, fire up the memes. There will be no escaping the "curse" narrative.

Are you riding with Drake or are you fading?

Rather than using an offshore sportsbook, try using one of the many legal platforms like DraftKings, PointsBet, or Caesars.

Written by Nick Makowitz, our US Sports Betting Industry Expert.

Nick Makowitz

In his spare time, Nick likes digging into NFL and NCAAB betting data, going to breweries with friends, and trying out any and every Mexican restaurant in Pittsburgh. More from Nick Makowitz