As if watching Liverpool lose out to Manchester City in the Premier League title race by a single point on the final day of the season wasn't exhausting enough, one Reds fan also suffered the double blow of missing out on an enormous cash windfall as a result.
Ten months ago, Tanya Hanley placed a £100 ($125) accumulator bet on her side to win an unprecedented quadruple one week before the 2021-22 season began at odds of 3,671/1. Put simply, if the Reds went on to win both domestic cups, the Premier League and the Champions League all in the same campaign, Hanley would recoup the life-changing sum of £367,100 ($461,600).
Heading into the final day of the league season on Sunday, Betfair made a point of highlighting the bet on social media, detailing precisely what was at stake for the "Quadruple Queen."
Hanley also revealed that her accumulator was the first bet she'd ever made and had opened an account especially in order to lodge it back in early August.
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"I just had a feeling that Liverpool could do it and that something big was going to happen," she said. "I saw the odds ... for Liverpool to win all four trophies and I opened an account and placed my first ever bet."
With Liverpool having already won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, the early cash-out offer on Hanley's bet continued to creep upwards and had reached £22,712 ($28,550) as Jurgen Klopp's side geared up to face Wolves in their final league outing.
Betfair then saw fit to boost Hanley's quadruple cash-out offer up to £35,000 ($44,000) on the morning of the match and even gave her the option of a partial cash-out deal that would see her bag £25,000 ($31,400) up front and a further £100,000 ($125,700) if the Reds went on to win the Premier League and the Champions League. Such was Hanley's faith in her side that both offers were rejected.
🚨 𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗘𝗥 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘
— Betfair (@Betfair) May 22, 2022
We've boosted Tanya's quadruple Cash Out offer from £22,712 to £35,000 this morning!
We've also offered her a boosted partial Cash Out offer - £25,000 now + a further £100,000 win if Liverpool lift both the PL & UCL
She hasn't accepted either yet... pic.twitter.com/gwzpWT1ARA
Tensions began to rise even further as the final day unfolded and Man City fell behind against Aston Villa to a shock Matty Cash goal which reduced their lead at the top of the table down from one point to mere goal difference. Meanwhile, Liverpool were level-pegging at 1-1 with Wolves and needed just one more goal to leapfrog their rivals into top spot.
By this point, Hanley's cash-out offer had climbed to £62,317 ($78,300) but still she refused to budge in the unshakeable belief that her side would be able to pull off a miracle.
📈 CURRENT LIVE CASH OUT OFFER: £62,371
— Betfair (@Betfair) May 22, 2022
HT: Liverpool 1-1 Wolves
HT: Man City 0-1 Villa
What would you do? pic.twitter.com/pEkklLUFJD
Sure enough, City looked to have capitulated at the worst possible moment when they fell two goals behind at the Etihad as the season entered its final 20 minutes.
Over at Anfield, Mohamed Salah had come off the bench and Liverpool were turning the screw in desperate search of a winner against Wolves as Tanya's cash-out offer swelled to a staggering £95,000 ($120,000).
Still no movement. Not a flicker.
⏰ 5:34pm
— Betfair (@Betfair) May 22, 2022
Cash out offer of £95,000.
Huge 20 minutes to go...
Then came the moment. Three goals in five dizzying minutes sealed a 3-2 win for Pep Guardiola's resurgent side that negated Liverpool's result entirely and delivered the silverware to City for the fourth time in five years.
Jurgen Klopp's team won 3-1 but it didn't matter a jot in the end as they ended in the runner-up spot. City took the title by a point and the quest for the quadruple was quashed in heart-breaking fashion. With a £367,100 jackpot on the line, Hanley didn't cash out.
⛔️ Tanya didn't cash out.
— Betfair (@Betfair) May 22, 2022
Alas, her optimism was not repaid. She even ignored the clear cosmic messages being sent to her by the universe.
The world gave her a sign too! pic.twitter.com/nGKlELB7Rx
— M a c c a (@macca_689908) May 22, 2022
As City fans celebrated wildly after Ilkay Gundogan's second goal and City's third sealed another title, Tanya's winnings went up in smoke.
Ouch. This might be a good time to close that betting account and lose the password forever.