Portsmouth fan turns £4 into £997,000 with 12-fold corner accumulator at 249,345-1

A 45-year-old man from Portsmouth has won just under £1 million from a £4 bet after correctly predicting that 12 English Football League matches would each produce more than 11.5 corners, landing a return of £997,385 at odds of 249,345-1.

The punter, who has not been named, placed the 12-fold accumulator on Saturday’s EFL fixtures and only discovered his windfall around half an hour after the final whistles had blown. He had been watching Aston Villa’s early kick-off with his son before walking home in the rain, unaware of what was waiting in his account.

“I didn’t actually realise it had come in until about half an hour after all the games had finished,” he said. “When I checked my account I couldn’t believe it. I don’t know how to describe it really. It was emotional, I felt a little bit sick at first making sure it was real, and then obviously the reality kicked in.”

His wife had to confirm the balance was genuine. “I kept asking her, ‘This is right, isn’t it?’ It didn’t seem real. It’s hard to put into words. I didn’t sleep much last night, thinking about what we can do with the money.”

The accumulator covered 10 League One games and two Championship fixtures, with the 12 matches averaging 14 corners each. Among the results that contributed to the payout were Oxford United against Bradford, Reading against Barnsley, and Stevenage against MK Dons.

The winner said the bet grew out of a weekly ritual with friends. “Me and some friends usually do an accumulator on the weekend for a bit of fun — I like to do corners. I had £4 in my account so I decided to do one of my own with a few more corners in.”

He plans to use the money to pay off his mortgage, buy new cars for himself and his wife, and fund a family holiday, while also spending more time watching Aston Villa with his son. “I’m sure that I’ll be treating my mates after winning this one,” he added. “It will be my round all the time.”

Betfair spokesperson Sam Rosbottom said: “We are absolutely delighted for this Portsmouth punter and couldn’t be happier to pay out such a large sum of money. It’s an incredible amount to win on a football accumulator.”