England victory set to cost bookies tens of millions

The cost of England winning the Euros on Sunday would spiral well into the tens of millions of pounds for bookmakers, according to betting giant William Hill, which has an office in Malta.

England were heavily-backed pre-tournament favourites, and victory for Gareth Southgate’s men would trigger one of the biggest football payouts of all time for the bookies.

England captain Harry Kane now heads the betting to be the Tournament Top Goalscorer after his penalty against the Netherlands and would be the most expensive result for William Hill in that market.

Spokesperson for William Hill, Lee Phelps, said: “As we have been Top Price Guarantee for the duration of the tournament and before it started, an England win would cost us deep into seven figures. Should Harry Kane be the top scorer we will lose a lot there too, as he has been popular in the Top Goalscorer market.

“Though it would be great for football to finally come home, it looks set to cost the UK betting industry well into the tens of millions of pounds. We’re expecting to see historically high turnover on Sunday, and with a lot of that money set to rest on the Three Lions’ shoulders, it will be very expensive.

“Most money around the final has been on England to win at 5/2, although it is expected that Lamine Yamal – who is now favourite for player of the tournament – will cause issues against either a not fully fit Luke Shaw or an out of position Kieran Trippier, so he has been popular in scorer markets.”