A World Cup question helped a Who Wants To Be A Millionaire contestant win a life-changing amount of money!
A contestant on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire won a life-changing amount of money after correctly answering a tricky World Cup question.
The ITV show is known for tough sports questions, and in a recent episode, Jeremy Clarkson asked the contestant which continent has hosted the most World Cups in history. The choices were Africa, South America, Europe, and Asia, and you could see the contestant was a bit worried at first.
Still, he felt confident Europe was the answer. He said, “I’m pretty sure it’s Europe, but let me think. Africa’s only hosted once, in South Africa 2010. Asia once too, in Japan and South Korea. South America had Mexico twice, but Mexico isn’t really in South America. Brazil hosted recently. Europe has hosted many times. It’s definitely Europe. Final answer.”
After a short pause, Clarkson said he was right and won £64,000! Europe has hosted the World Cup 11 times so far, and in 2030, that number will go up to 12, with Spain, Portugal, and Morocco hosting together.
The contestant’s great World Cup knowledge helped him win big. But not everyone has such luck. A past contestant, Marc Offenbacher from Germany, lost a huge £100,000 on another World Cup question.
Offenbacher did well, answering 12 out of 15 questions. With two lifelines left, he was asked: “What is the most common final score in men’s FIFA World Cup finals? 1–0, 2–1, 3–1, or 4–2?”
He admitted, “I never watch football. Not even other sports.” One lifeline allowed the audience to help by standing if they knew the answer. An audience member ruled out 4–2. Then Offenbacher used his 50:50 lifeline, which left 4–2 and 2–1. The audience member guessed 2–1, so Offenbacher chose that.
Unfortunately, the right answer was 4–2, which actually happened four times, including England’s 1966 win and France’s victory in 2018. The question was worth £108,000, but because Offenbacher didn’t have a safety net, he ended up with just €500 (£435)—a much smaller prize.