Sport

Sport

Oxfam gets 100k from beyond a gambler’s grave

Oxfam gets 100k from beyond a gambler’s grave

British Charity Oxfam has landed a giant windfall, thanks to a kind gambler who left them a betting slip in his will. By STAFF REPORTER.

British charity Oxfam has cashed in on Rodger Federer’s Wimbledon win, bagging over £100,000 after being named as a beneficiary in a gambler’s will.

Nick Newlife, from Oxford in England, placed a bet of £1,520 at odds of 66/1 on Federer winning seven or more titles nearly ten years ago. Newlife passed away in 2009, aged 69, and left his entire estate, including the betting slip from 2003, to Oxfam, a charity which provides emergency and development aid around the world. Oxfam came close to the  bagging the cash last year, when Federer crashed out in the quarter-finals.

Federer beat Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday, racking up his 17th Grand Slam win, and while most of Britain was rooting for Murray, Oxfam admits that they were firmly behind the Swiss star, in the hopes of securing the windfall.

“All of Oxfam have been cheering Federer’s progress for the past couple of weeks,” said Oxfam’s Andrew Barton.

“The real hero, though, must be Mr Newlife, for his generous gift and his tremendous sporting acumen.”??Oxfam previously collected £16,750 from another bet by Newlife – one placed on Federer winning 14 Grand Slam events – and they hope the donation will inspire others to donate as well. The latest pay-out is enough to provide a month’s worth of food for 10,000 people hit by the food crisis in west Africa.

“Legacies amount to 10% of our total income from individuals, so they’re essential to us, and as this case proves they can come in all shapes and sizes,” an Oxfam spokesperson said. DM

Photo by Reuters

Gallery

Please peer review 3 community comments before your comment can be posted

We would like our readers to start paying for Daily Maverick...

…but we are not going to force you to. Over 10 million users come to us each month for the news. We have not put it behind a paywall because the truth should not be a luxury.

Instead we ask our readers who can afford to contribute, even a small amount each month, to do so.

If you appreciate it and want to see us keep going then please consider contributing whatever you can.

Support Daily Maverick→
Payment options

Become a Maverick Insider

This could have been a paywall

On another site this would have been a paywall. Maverick Insider keeps our content free for all.

Become an Insider

Every seed of hope will one day sprout.

South African citizens throughout the country are standing up for our human rights. Stay informed, connected and inspired by our weekly FREE Maverick Citizen newsletter.