A lucky Kenyan has won Ksh221 million in SportPesa sports betting, the biggest jackpot ever in Kenya’s history. The identity of the winner, who was picked yesterday 30th April 2017, has yet to be revealed.
The winner will take home KSh221,301,602, but not before giving Kenya Revenue Authority its share of the pie.
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SportPesa is the leading sports betting company in Kenya and currently sponsors the Kenya Premier League, Hull City in the English Premier League and recently signed a three-year betting deal with LaLiga, the Spanish top-flight league.
This comes after two Kenyans shared a Ksh62 million jakpot in mid-March. Twenty-three-year-old college drop-out Quinter Chemei Nimo from Masindet village, Mount Elgon in Bungoma County and Julius Kerich, a father-of-four from Kericho, shared Ksh31 million each after correctly predicting the outcome of 16 matches in the Mega Jackpot Games.
Sports betting has become a popular engagement among Kenyans, raising concerns that this is glorifying gambling at the expense of hard work. The latest win will certainly stimulate interest in sports betting and attract more into the activity.
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The Ksh221 million is a fortune in Kenya, a country where wealth is worshiped. It beats the value of and profitability of many companies listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange or even annual budgetary allocations for certain government departments.
Focus is likely to shift from SportPesa to the winner as Kenyans marvel at just how lucky he or he is and what such a humongous amount of money can do.
The winner will join Kenya’s dollar millionaires, a club of a select few people just below 10,000 in number, an enviable status but one that will also attract a lot of scrutiny. It will also be interesting to know how he or she managed to get to the win and how much was spent.
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