| Henry’s Comeback Goal Hits Bookmakers Hard |
Thierry Henry’s comeback goal for Arsenal against Leeds on Monday night was bad news for the bookmakers that lost over £1 million in total.Before the FA Cup encounter at the Emirates Stadium, bookmakers were offering 3-1 on Henry to score a romantic goal on his return to the club where he made his name despite him being named on the substitute’s bench.
Furthermore, bookmakers also had Henry listed at 14-1 to score the only goal in a 1-0 win. The punters snapped up the chance to bet on these odds and the result of 78th minute winner from the Frenchman was bookmakers counting the cost.
The goal was Henry’s 227th for Arsenal and his first since leaving the Gunners for Barcelona back in 2007. The 34 year old is currently on loan at Arsenal from New York Red Bulls for two months during the MLS off-season.
Graham Sharpe, spokesman for William Hill, stated "Thierry has cost the bookmaking industry a cool £1million. Our nightmare is that he scores against great rivals Spurs — we're already taking scores of bets at 8-1."
One lucky punter at Coral was counting his winnings after netting £7,000 for a bet on Henry to score. One online bet of £150 saw the punter take £2,100 home.
Ladbrokes, who were taking ten bets per second in-play, spokesman Alex Donohue summed up the thoughts of bookmakers everywhere by saying "It's as if punters read the script."
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