Newcastle owner blew £1 million in two hours

Mike Ashley, the man who built up an estimated fortune of £890 million through a chain of sporting goods shops, spent the night with Newcastle manager Alan Pardew and the club medical doctor Derek Llambias at the Aspers Casino.

Apparently the millionaire started the night with a gain of £130,000 but by 4am he lost £970,000. The Sun reports that Ashley “placing bets all over with £1,000 and £5,000 chips. It only took him about 10 minutes to lose the first £30,000, so he had to get some more chips. He bet thousands at a time, tens of thousands sometimes – covering the table with bets.”

The daily tabloid newspaper goes on to say that Ashely did not seem troubled by the loss, even going as far as tipping the dealer £700, when usually dealers are only tipped if the people would have won.

Ashley is famed for his love of gambling.