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Eight Winners Share $14.3 Million In Circa Survivor NFL Contest

Las Vegas Sports Betting Contest Draws 14,266 Entries

by Sean Chaffin  |  Published: Jan 08, 2025

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Circa Hotel and Casino Downtown Las VegasThe Circa Sports NFL handicapping contests wrapped up over the weekend with some interesting final-week dynamics. With several teams already locking up playoff appearances, handicappers faced some challenging matchups as some players rested starters and the league saw several upsets.

In total, the Circa Survivor and Circa Million VI paid out a record $20.3 million. The $1,000 Survivor, which had a documentary made about it in 2023, produced the largest handicapping prize pool in history, paying out $14.3 million to eight winners after a chaotic start with 14,266 entries.

Survivor Sweating

All eight winners in the sports betting competition held a 20-0 record and each took home $1,783,250. In the final week, five of the winning entries relied on Tampa Bay, which staged a second-half comeback after being down 16-6 to New Orleans at halftime.

Two entries chose Indianapolis, which also proved to be a nail-biter. The Colts ultimately beat Jacksonville 26-23 in overtime. A single entry breezed by, thanks to Arizona’s 47-24 win over San Francisco.

The final week saw some tough upsets for several players. Eight picked Atlanta, which lost to Carolina in overtime and ended the season on a two-game losing streak and getting bounced from playoff contention.

The final two contestants were relying on Green Bay, which lost 24-22 to Chicago on a last-second field goal. This was the first time in Survivor history where multiple entries lost in the final week.

The “Meatball Brothers” was one of the teams cashing in for a win. The group featured six friends who previously worked together in meat sales.

“Honest to god, for the last two weeks, we’ve slept maybe two hours a night,” 55-year-old Meatball team member Paul Czyz told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Another member of the group, Carson Williams, expressed the joy of reaching the finish line.

“This was the best 20 weeks of my life, outside of my wedding and the birth of my children Owen and Noelle,” he added.

The team needed a Colts win in the final week and also scored a bonus six-figure win after hedging on Jacksonville, which was a 3.5-point underdog.

Harvard graduates Brian Wood and Zheng Fan were also among the eight winning teams and picked the Buccaneers to win over the Saints. That came with some real ups and downs, but the team bet $30,000 on the New Orleans moneyline to win $200,000 in case things didn’t turn out as they hoped.

“Obviously at halftime, we were throwing up,” Wood told the Review-Journal. “I don’t think you can have a worse half as a 14-point favorite against (quarterback) Spencer Rattler at home in a must-win game. It’s insane.”

Million Contest Also Sees A $1 Million Winner

The Circa Million VI contest was also decided, with “Team BP” taking home the first-place prize of $1 million.

Going into the final week, BP was in second place and went 2-2-1 over Saturday and Sunday to move to the top. BP ended the season with a 60-26-4 record for 62 points, edging out the competition by just a half-point.

The final week also determined the contest’s “booby prize” with “The Brown Clown” finishing with the worst record of 27-61-2 to win $100,000. A check presentation is scheduled for Friday at the D Las Vegas with CEO Derek Stevens and the Circa team present checks to winners.

 
 
Tags: Sports Betting,   Sports Bet,   Sports Book,   Circa Casino,   Downtown Las Vegas,   Nevada,   Survivor,   NFL,   Football
 
 
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