Gladys Knight sparked a betting controversy when, by tradition, she sang the National Anthem before Super Bowl LIII on Sunday.
A prop under/over bet on the time it takes to sing the Anthem has become a Super Bowl favorite.
Most New Jersey sportsbooks had given odds of around 1min 50 sec and Knight finished her song in 1:49 – or did she?
After a short pause, she repeated the word ‘brave’ in a long, drawn-out manner to take her song time to 53 sec.
And that turned everything on its head. Officially the song ends with the word ‘brave’ – but which brave?
Burning Question
It was a burning question, punters and bookmakers were asking and arguing about afterwards. Some books paid out on the overs, some on the unders.
One Nevada sportsbook, BetOnline, is reported to have paid out both ways and taken a six-figure loss.
Others who initially saw the winning bet as being an over are holding back. Reports are that they have rescinded that option and are reviewing it.
