Dead man's bets win money for Oxfam

8 March 2010, 17:17 | Updated: 9 March 2010, 07:28

Oxford-based Oxfam could earn £340,000 over the next ten years, thanks to bets a man from Tackley placed before he died.

Nicholas Newlife left his estate to the Cowley-based charity when he died in February 2009, aged 69.  This included any winnings from a series of wagers he had made.

A bet on Roger Federer winning 14 Grand Slam tennis titles by 2020 has already come in, and netted Oxfam nearly £17,000.  If the Swiss wins Wimbledon this year, the charity stands to gain another £100,000.  Other bets centre around the successes of American tennis star Andy Roddick and cricketer Ramnaresh Sarwan.

Cathy Ferrier, Fundraising and Supporter Marketing Director at Oxfam, said: "We’re enormously grateful to Mr Newlife for his generous gift, and will be keeping a close eye on Wimbledon this year as a result.

"Legacies amount to 10 per cent 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. It is very easy to make a will and including Oxfam could leave a lasting legacy for those most in need.

"Every time someone leaves us a gift in their will, whether that’s a few pounds or a few thousands pounds, it helps us make a huge difference to thousands of lives around the world."

Graham Sharpe, Media Relations Director at William Hill, said: "Mr Newlife was clearly a very shrewd sporting gambler whose early identification of potential superstars won tens of thousands of pounds for himself while he was still alive - but to ensure that a respected charity would benefit from any bets which came to fruition after his death makes him unprecedented in my thirty year experience of the betting industry.

"Roger Federer is already 6/4 hot favourite to win this summer's Wimbledon and I fully expect to be handing over a six figure cheque to Oxfam when he does so."

The outstanding bets placed by Mr Newlife that could still come off are:

£1520 on Federer to win Wimbledon men’s singles at least 7 times before 2020 at 66/1 – this would win £101,840 for Oxfam this summer if he comes out on top at this summer’s Wimbledon.
£1,000 on Andy Roddick to win at least 7 grand slam singles titles before 2020 at 33/1 – this would win £34,000 for Oxfam.
£750 on Andy Roddick to win at least 10 grand slam singles titles before 2020 at 100/1 – this would win £75,075 for Oxfam.
£350 on Ramnaresh Sarwan to make over 7,000 test match runs by end of 2019 at 50/1 – this would win £17,850.
£300 on Ramnaresh Sarwan to make more than 8,000 test match runs by end of 2019 at 100/1 – this would win £30,300.
£250 on Ramnaresh Sarwan to make more than 9,000 test match runs by end of 2019 at 250/1 – this would win £62,750.