Rap phenomenon Drake lost $300,000 on the US Open tennis final as Carlos Alcaraz overcame Jannik Sinner.
The world number one and two met in a Grand Slam final for the third time this year in New York and it was the Spaniard who came out on top.
Sinner had previously beaten Alcaraz at Wimbledon in July, reversing the form from the French Open a month earlier.
Drake, known to be a keen gambler who holds a lucrative sponsorship deal with offshore sportsbook Stake, posted on social media he had backed Sinner at odds of -145.
He unsuccessfully wagered on Taylor Fritz to win this tournament last year and the famous ‘curse’ continues, with many of the belief Drake is one of the worst judges to grace the world of gambling.
However, there’s every chance he or his advisers target high-profile losers in order for his sponsorship to gain a bigger reach – there’s no fun in seeing a gambler win, the losers are what drives traction.
In fact, there are some websites that track every bet he publicly places – and according to TheDrakeCurse.com, he is up over $400,000 all-time from the sports bets he’s posted online.
Across 82 bets, Drake has wagered nearly $36 million with NFL his most profitable avenue. Soccer accounts for his biggest losses and UFC sees the largest action.
Drake just placed a $300K bet on Jannik Sinner to win the US Open pic.twitter.com/NNOC5sJ9zo
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 2, 2025
The hitmaker often takes part in high-stakes gambling on Stake while livestreaming it all on the platform Kick, with speculation suggesting he is paid $100 million a year to promote the online casino.
Crypto casinos such as Stake have drastically risen in popularity in recent years and the industry doesn’t look like slowing down any time soon.
Drake gives away crypto prizes to viewers and the sports betting app launched in 2017 enjoyed revenue of over $4 billion in 2024.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
