When Bournemouth's Lewis Cook received his call up to the England squad he will, no doubt, have been excited by the prospect of winning his first senior international cap. His grandfather, will be watching not just through pride, however, because his grandson's appearance could trigger a £17,000 windfall from bookmakers William Hill.
Lewis' grandfather, Trevor Burlingham, placed a £500 wager that his grandson would win a senior England cap before his 26th birthday just as he was breaking into the Leeds United first team as an 18 year old back in 2014.
When offered 33/1, Trevor staked £500 on that outcome in his local William Hill shop in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire.
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"Lewis has obviously already had one call up but didn't win a cap and it now looks like a case of when, not if his grandfather is repaid for the faith he showed in his grandson," said William Hill spokesman Joe Crilly. "He has been in fine form this season and is well deserving of a call up, so let's hope he can go one better and bag a cap in the next few days."
It wouldn't be the first time that someone has won big after backing a relative to hit the footballing heights:
-Eddie Kirkland scooping £10,000 on his son Chris winning an England cap with a bet of £100 at 100/1, placed when Chris was 12 years old.
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-Peter Edwards winning £125,000 when his grandson Harry Wilson made his Wales debut in 2013 at the age of just 16/ Peter had wagered £50 at 2,500/1 that his son would play for Wales when he was just 18 months old.
-The father of Ryan Tunnicliffe, currently at Millwall, placed a £100 bet at 100/1 that his then, nine-year-old son, would make a first team appearance for Manchester United, which he did in 2012. His father won £10,000.
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