Rapper Drake has placed a $1.5million (£1.1 million) bet on Argentina beating Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final. The game is set to take place on July 19, 2026, at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, which has been temporarily renamed the New York New Jersey Stadium for the tournament, and will see the top two teams of the tournament compete for the FIFA World Cup Trophy.
Drake, real name Aubrey Drake Graham, took to Instagram to share a screenshot of the online bet – Argentina to win in normal or extra time – that he placed. If Argentina does win the game, Drake will receive a payout of more than $5.1million (£3.79 million).
“What’s that saying??? Better luck next time…” he captioned the post, referencing the $1million bet he lost on July 11 after placing money on UFC fighter Conor McGregor winning his bout against Max Holloway.
Drake has become known over the years for what has been dubbed the ‘Drake curse,” as a team or sportsperson loses when the 39-year-old bets on them winning.
© Zuffa LLC via Getty ImagesA website, named TheDrakeCurse.com, was created to log his full sports betting history and track the losses. It has tracked that the rapper is “currently down $1.56M all-time from his public sports bets,” after placing over 87 bets.
“He’s won 32 out of those 87 bets, losing 55 times. This gives him a strike rate of 36.8%. His average bet size is $445.08K,” the website claims.
Drake’s biggest sports bet loss was $1.6million in 2022 after incorrectly predicting that Israel Adesanya would beat Alex Pereira during UFC 281.
© Getty ImagesArgentina made it to the final of the World Cup after beating England 2-1 on July 15, 2026. However, the team is embroiled in controversy over allegations of favoritism by the FIFA organization and referees, with VAR decisions overriding previously held calls on the pitch.
“What this group has achieved is incredible – another final, we’ve come back to be world champions, we’re the best in the world after these four years, whether people like it or not, and no matter what they say,” star striker Lionel Messi later said.
“This proves that what we did wasn’t by chance and that nobody gave us anything. Reaching two World Cup finals is something few achieve, and this group did it.”
“Nobody can question the integrity of the FIFA World Cup match officials. When this happens, it may provoke reactions that lead to threats against them and their families. This is not right. Equally, nobody can claim that FIFA Refereeing can be influenced by anyone, not even by the FIFA President,” said Pierluigi Collina,FIFA Referee Committee Chairman.
Spain beat France 2-0 on July 14 to secure their spot in the final. Spain has won once, in 2010, and Argentina has won three times.
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