CFL fan wins $322K in record-breaking 50-50 raffle
Edmonton Eskimos fan Connor Croken won a record-breaking jackpot from Thursday's 50-50 draw, the team announced.
Croken, 20, claimed the $322,216 ($344,534 Canadian) prize after presenting the winning ticket at team offices Friday. The winning sum is half of the total funds raised by fans at the Eskimos and Calgary Stampeders game, with the balance earmarked for amateur football in Alberta.
The prize is believed to be among the largest jackpots in 50-50 raffle sports history, according to ESPN.
Eskimos CEO and president Len Rhodes said the huge pot was aided by $66,812 ($71,732 Canadian) in unclaimed prize money from the club's July 11 game, in addition to a huge turnout (40,066 fans) to see the team play its geographical rival from Calgary.
As it turned out, we had half the people in the stands and half the people on the concourses trying to buy tickets.
We think we could have reached a prize of $500,000, but we're a football team, not a lottery team.
The team said it's the largest prize in franchise history. Croken will receive a check for his winnings Tuesday, according to the club.