Federer’s Wimbledon win generates six-figure donation to British charity

Most Brits were bummed when Scotsman Andy Murray lost in the Wimbledon finals to Roger Federer, of Switzerland.

A win by Murray would have marked the first time in 76 years that a British citizen won Wimbledon. But at one British charity, Federer’s win generated emotions of a different sort.

With Federer’s win, the charity Oxfam netted more than $150,000.

That’s because of a bet placed nearly a decade ago on Roger Federer winning seven or more Wimbledon titles, a feat he achieved Sunday by beating Andy Murray.

The man who made the bet died in 2009. He left his entire estate, including the bet at 66-1 odds, to Oxfam.

Oxfam’s Andrew Barton says the Murray-Federer match was difficult to watch because his loyalties were split.

“I was just sitting there watching the tennis and I kept finding myself calling for Murray, particularly in that long game in the third set,” Barton said. “And then my head is telling me: Andrew, remember Oxfam gets the money if Federer wins.”

So in this case, one country’s loss is a charity’s gain.

The betting agent was quoted as saying they normally wouldn’t be too happy about paying out a six-figure sum, but since it was going to Oxfam, it was a little different.

“We’re delighted that a sad story has had a very positive conclusion,” he said.

And it seems the punter, as gamblers are known in the United Kingdom, did well by Oxfam even before the Sunday match. The man placed an earlier bet also at 66-1 on Roger Federer.

The wager was on the Swiss tennis star winning at least 14 grand slam titles before 2020.

It paid out $26,000 for Oxfam last year.