Absolute SCENES happened on Thursday. My £10 to £500 Ladder Challenge went all the way to the top in Madrid, with 5,483 followers backing the final bet of the challenge.
The Bad Man community took £1.2 million (£1,214,336 to be precise) from Betfair as my latest Ladder Challenge went the distance.
What is the Ladder Challenge?
The ladder challenge is a rolling betting challenge, starting small and aiming big. Starting with a £10 stake and aiming to reach £500 after 7 bets. You place £10 on Bet 1 and roll the winnings onto the next and so on.
I picked 7 bets over 7 days, each one backed with a ton of research. I took the winnings from Bet 1 (an ecclusive super boost for Leipzig to win) and put the full return on bet 2. That continued… and continued… and next thing you know we’ve all won a whopping £500!
You can start with whatever amount you want, there’s no requirement to stake the £10. If you want to go smaller, you can make it a £5 to £250 challenge, £2 to £100, or £1 to £50. It’s all about keeping it fun, so choose a starting stake that’ll do that.
I’ll be going again this weekend with a £10 to £1000 Ladder Challenge so keep an eye out on site and socials.
How the Ladder Challenge won
I mentioned the super boost for Leipzig to win, and that’s where it all started. Here’s exactly how it happened:
Bet 1
£10 to £20 – Leipzig to win (vs Stuttgart)
Leipzig kicked us off on the Friday night, running out 2-1 winners. A bit of a nervy end but with a generous boost, we were on to step 2 with double the money.
Bet 2
£20 to £34 – Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals in Hoffenheim vs Borussia Monchengladbach
Probably the squeakiest things got I’d say? Gladbach raced in to a 2-0 lead, we were left to wait until 80 minutes for the Hoffenheim goal we needed. The game ended 4-1 to the visitors.
Bet 3
£34 to £51 – Hamburg to win (vs Braunschweig)
Amazing to see 57,000 fans at a 2nd division game just to cheer on the ladder. A topsy turvy game, with Hamburg leading 2-0 & 3-1. The visitors set up a tense finish but they were caught cold as the hosts sealed a 4-2 triumph.
Bet 4
£51 to £86 – Genk to win & over 2.5 goals (vs Seraing United)
Just 6 hours after bet 3 landed, we were cheering on Belgian lead leaders Genk. Top vs bottom and it all went to plan as they stormed to a 4-0 win.
Bet 5
£86 to £149 – Carlisle to win or draw & take 4+ corners
From Belgium to Cumbria as we took in a derby on Tuesday night. The hosts ran riot, winning 5-1 and notching up 5 corners in the process – even covering those of who thought 4+ meant 5 or more. It doesn’t by the way.
Bet 6
£149 to £298 – Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals in Toulouse vs Troyes.
But but… Bad Man, there isn’t goals in French game. Bad Man, the head to head records aren’t good. Calm down. 2-1 at 36 minutes and it was on to the final bet. Easiest win we’ve had.
Bet 7
£278 to £501 – Real Madrid to win & over 2.5 match cards (vs Valencia)
So it all came down to this. I took out £20 so that whatever happened, the ladder challenge was a profit. We awaited the 20:00 kick off with huge suspense.
A slow first half meant we went into injury time with just the one card and no goals. Then. What’s this? Antonio Rudiger goalllll… VAR… disallowed. The consolation was a Benzema card tow minutes later.
So it came down to the final 45 minutes of the challenge to bring home the bacon. 52nd minute Marco Asensio breaks the deadlock with an absolute screamer. TWO minutes later Vini Jr all but seals the victory. Now all we had to do was wait for another card.
Was that a card? Diakhaby? *Frantically checks FlashScore*
Yessssssssss. We had done it. Madrid held on and the crowd went wild! £500 from a tenner. £1.2 million from Betfair’s back pocket and a Ladder Challenge for the ages.
How did I make my picks?
As you all know, every single bet I post on my website (under Latest Tips) and on my socials (remember to like my Facebook Page and follow my Twitter) is filled to the brim with research. Hours of work goes into each bet so you guys don’t have to, all provided completely free to boost the chances of winning.
I used Betfair who guaranteed the best odds on every challenge bet, so we could get to £500 the quickest.
There were many doubters for each and every one of the bets, so here’s just a snippet of the research that went in to all 7 of the bets in this Ladder Challenge:
Bet 1
Leipzig to win (vs Stuttgart)
“For chance creation, few can best Leipzig. An xG P/90 of 1.84 ranks 3rd in the Bundesliga, and it’s no surprise that a side is able to create quality chances when they have the likes of Dani Olmo and Dominik Szoboszlai at their disposal.”
See all the research here: Bet 1 Research
Bet 2
Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals in Hoffenheim vs Borussia Monchengladbach
“Gladbach games see an average of 3.41 goals and no side in the division has a higher hit rate (71%) for over 2.5 goals. They match that with a 71% strike rate for BTTS, again, the highest in the division.
Hoffenheim games this season have averaged 3.06 goals, with 65% of them seeing over 2.5 land and 65% landing for BTTS. Their last 5 games in a row have all seen BTTS & over 2.5 land.”
See my bet 2 breakdown here: Bet 2 Research
Bet 3
Hamburg to win (vs Braunschweig)
“Another huge element of this bet is that Braunschweig are missing a lot of first team players. Anthony Ujah, Bryan Henning and Immanuel Pherai are all serious doubts. Filip Benkovic, Luc Ihorst and Phillip Strompf are all absent.”
All the research is here: Bet 3 Research
Bet 4
Genk to win & over 2.5 goals (vs Seraing United)
“Genk have won 18 of their 21 games this season, losing 2 and drawing 1. They’re 3 points ahead of second placed Union Saint-Gilloise, and even have 2 games in hand. The league leaders have scored in all but 2 of their games this season”
Grab all the research for the Belgian banker here: Bet 4 Research
Bet 5
Carlisle to win or draw & take 4+ corners
“At Brunton Park they’ve lost just 1 game this season. Their metrics at home are exceptional, they average an xG of 1.68 here and an xGA against of just 0.76 which is, well exceptional. They average 6.38 corners at home and have managed 4 or more in 92% of their games here.”
Read all the lowdown behind the bet: Bet 5 Research
Bet 6
Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals in Toulouse vs Troyes
“Troyes are statistically the most entertaining side to watch in Ligue 1. Their games average a huge 3.60 goals, 65% have seen over 2.5 and a ridiculous 80% have seen BTTS land. Away from home it gets even more bonkers for Troyes. Their games average 4.70 goals, and they’ve managed a 90% strike rate for both over 2.5 goals and BTTS.”
Read why goals were guaranteed: Bet 6 Research
Bet 7
Real Madrid to win & over 2.5 match cards (vs Valencia)
“This is now a must win for Madrid, in that scenario there’s few better opponents than a Valencia side who are falling apart.They’ve lost 3 of their last 4. They’ve only won 1 game on the road all season and are yet again under caretaker charge following the departure of Gennaro Gattuso.”
The final rung of the Ladder Challenge: Bet 7 Research
How you guys reacted
This Ladder Challenge would have been nothing without you guys. You stuck by every single bet, and even started the #InBadManWeTrust movement against all the doubters.
Without you, we wouldn’t have blown a crater in Betfair’s bank account (a £1,214,336 hole!).
There’s been a crazy amount of messages and tweets filling my inbox, and the notifications have been unreal. I appreciate every single one of them and I’ll try get back to you all.
It’s amazing to see what everyone’s got planned for the £500, and my only piece of advice is to WITHDRAW the winnings. With that dosh I’ve seen people putting it towards birthday celebrations, holidays abroad, even some of the profit going towards a house being built. You love to see it.
