A Professional Sports Bettor Turned A $700K Loan Into $300 Million (TWEETS)

A professional sports gambler used analytics to turn a $700,000 loan into more than $300 million.

This is the wild story ???

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

2) After leaving Bank of America in 2001, Matthew Benham joined sports gambling company Premier Bet.

His job was to help develop predictive gambling models based on analytics.

The best part?

Benham learned under one of the most successful gamblers in the world — Tony Bloom.

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

4) Matthew Benham went on to win millions of dollars gambling on sports, but in 2004, he set up his own betting syndicate — Smartodds.

The idea was simple:

Benham consulted clients using the same algorithms, statistics & data research that made him a successful sports gambler.

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

6) Attending his first game at 11 years old, Matthew Benham has been a lifelong fan of Brentford FC.

So when the club faced financial trouble in 2007, Benham stepped up.

He provided a $700,000 loan so that Brentford supporters could purchase the team.

But there was a catch…

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

8) Matthew Benham spent almost $10 million on a smaller club in Denmark — FC Midtjylland — to test his analytical concepts.

The ideas that worked, he used at Brentford FC.

The ideas that didn't, he threw in the trash.

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

10) For example, Brentford FC started to look more closely at “expected goals” rather than how many goals a player actually scored.

Their theory?

In a low-scoring sport that is skewed by randomness & luck, the quality & quantity of chances created during a match mattered more.

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

12) Why?

Because Brentford believed you had to give a young player at least 35 games before determining his value.

But the richest clubs in the world didn’t have the time, patience, or appropriate infrastructure to do that.

As a small club willing to experiment, Brentford did.

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

14) The results weren’t immediate, but now a decade later, they have paid off.

After winning the Championship Play-Off Final last weekend, Brentford FC has completed its ascent from the fourth tier of English football to the Premier League.

The best part?

It's worth $300M+. pic.twitter.com/YeFta21duc

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021

16) In a sport that has historically refused the analytical revolution, Matthew Benham decided to shake things up.

He saved his childhood team from bankruptcy, used his experience in analytics to create a competitive advantage & turned a $700k loan into $300M+.

That's amazing. pic.twitter.com/X3vsjFkxIe

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) June 3, 2021