Massive March Madness Bet on Duke to Win National Championship Would Cash $1.75 Million

Brian Giuffra | Mar 20, 2025

Cooper Flagg (left) leads Duke into the NCAA Tournament. / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Duke is the betting favorite to win the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, but we all know March is madness and nothing is guaranteed based on the odds. 

That fact hasn’t scared one bettor off from placing a monster bet on the Blue Devils to cut down the final nets in San Antonio this year. 

According to Ben Fawkes, a bettor just wagered a staggering $500,000 on Duke to win the men’s basketball national championship. The bet was placed with BetMGM and has odds of +350. That means if Duke wins the title, this bettor would profit $1.75 million with a total payout of $2,250,000.

This isn’t the only person betting big on Duke. 

A few days ago, Caesars Sportsbook took a $100,000 bet on Duke to win the national championship at +360 odds. That bettor would profit $360,000 if Duke wins. 

Maybe these two should get together and start a prayer circle. 

Duke is the No. 1 seed in the East region. They won the ACC Tournament, but their best player, Cooper Flagg, rolled his ankle in the quarterfinals and didn’t play after that. He is expected to play in the NCAA Tournament, but it’s unclear how healthy he’ll be after a week's recovery. 

The good news is Duke, as the top seed, faces an overmatched Mt. St. Mary’s team in the first round. Duke is a massive 32.5-point favorite at FanDuel Sportsbook. Odds are they’ll get Flagg out there for a little bit to get him into game action, but not play him too much. 

Presuming it wins, Duke then would face either Mississippi State or Baylor in the Round of 32. 

The biggest threats to Duke, at least by odds, are Florida (+360), Auburn (+550), and Houston (+600), with all those odds coming from FanDuel. Every other team has odds of +1900 or higher. 

Obviously this is a lot of faith in Duke and the health of Flagg. But with the way he’s played when healthy, and Duke’s talent across the court, it wouldn’t be surprising if these big bets hit and made two people very happy. 

As a new BetMGM user, you can now claim up to $1,500 in bonus bets when you create an account using BetMGM bonus code SI1500, deposit at least $10, and place a real money wager. If you lose your bet, BetMGM will return your entire stake as bonus bets.

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