World Cup Final: Drake stakes ₦2.3bn on Argentina as ‘curse’ resurfaces

Canadian rapper Drake has wagered $1.5 million—about ₦2.3 billion—on Argentina to defeat Spain in Sunday’s 2026 FIFA World Cup final.

The five-time Grammy winner, whose real name is Aubrey Drake Graham, revealed the high-stakes bet by sharing a screenshot of his betting slip on Instagram.

Drake stands to collect more than $5.1 million if Lionel Messi and Argentina successfully defend their World Cup crown at the New York New Jersey Stadium.

“What’s that saying??? Better luck next time…” the 39-year-old wrote alongside the screenshot.

His decision to back Argentina has reignited conversations about the infamous “Drake curse”—a superstition that teams and athletes supported by the rapper often go on to lose.

The supposed curse has followed Drake across several sports after a string of unsuccessful wagers.

It recently attracted attention again when he lost a $1 million bet on former UFC champion Conor McGregor, who was defeated by Max Holloway.

The phenomenon has become so popular among sports fans that a website, TheDrakeCurse.com, was created to track the rapper’s betting record.

Away from sports, Drake returned to music earlier this year with three surprise albums—Iceman, Maid Of Honour and Habibti.

Iceman subsequently became his seventh number-one project on the UK Albums Chart.