Michael Owen flopped spectacularly on Deal or No Deal.
Viewers were shocked by the’minted’ football star’s performance when he faced off against the Banker for charity in the ITV revival’s Christmas special.
Michael was playing for Fight for Sight, which finances research into the prevention and treatment of blindness and eye illness, since his kid has Stargardt disease, a rare degenerative condition.
He had lots of friends and loved ones in the crowd to cheer him on, with daughter Gemma Owen – of Love Island 2022 fame – just one of the well-known faces behind the 22 red boxes.
Michael, 44, got off to a fast start. Very powerful, in fact, to the point where fans at home questioned if the programme was ‘rigged’ in his favour (spoiler alert: it wasn’t).
At one point, Michael began opening blue boxes in a row, leaving the left side of the board vacant and only high red amounts in play, with £100,000 and £25,000 on the line.
Unfortunately, the £100k was taken out, leaving Michael with £4,000, £5,000, and that lethal £25k.
At this moment, the unnamed banker gave him £10,200, on which Michael had to think long and hard.
His squad pushed him to go on, believing the £25k was within his box and, eventually, the amount he would take away.
Gemma, on the other hand, was unsure, telling her father constantly from the outset that she had a horrible feeling about her box.
After weighing the options, a smug Michael answered ‘no deal’ to the £10k, which stunned the viewers at home, knowing that it was unlikely he would walk away with anything more.
Unfortunately, his adrenaline quickly wore off when the next box he opened was Gemma’s, who was confirmed correct when the £25k was discovered beneath her lid, causing cries of terror from the studio audience.
So, left with either £4k or £5k, Michael’s game had come crumbling down in spectacular fashion.
His final offer from the Banker was just over £4k, which he declined in the hopes of winning something more.
When host Stephen Mulhern opened Michael’s box, he discovered he was sitting with £4k all along, therefore not beating the Banker at his own cruel game.
Reacting to the episode on X, formerly Twitter, social media users were stunned at how Michael was so sure and smug about turning down the £10k offer.
Plenty also questioned why the multi-millionaire was on the show in the first place and called for him to make up the £96k out of his own pocket.
‘These rich people are too casual with money. Hope he coughs up the difference to his top offer’, Greg Phillips wrote.
Owen should top up that amount with £96k of his own money for his charity… #DealOrNoDeal
— Mr Hyper Critical (@MrHyperCritic) December 17, 2023
Gambling with money for charity is a bit silly, he should have dealt at £10k #DealOrNoDeal
— Erin Zammitt (@_erinz_) December 17, 2023
#DealOrNoDeal Pathetic – can’t believe he didn’t take the £10k 🙄🙄
— Denise Stammers (@Denise_1963) December 17, 2023
Michael Owen is a multi millionaire but didn’t offer to make up the difference to the highest offer he received from the banker. What a cheapskate. #DealornoDeal
— Flowerbomb212 (@Flowerbomb212) December 17, 2023
#DealOrNoDeal Michael Owen has an estimated net worth of $68 million (£54.4 million),
— Mick Davies (@mickdavies83) December 17, 2023
Michael Owen saying ‘No Deal’ to £10k and Gemma’s box having £25k in it #DealOrNoDeal pic.twitter.com/pMiab7CyFQ
— ★ ANASTAZIA ★ (@__Anastazia__) December 17, 2023
Amy Hargitay-Visage added: ‘he could quadruple that in a heartbeat and not even notice the difference in his bank’.
‘Michael Owen is an absolute whopper. Anyone in their right mind, playing for charity, would’ve accepted the Deal and given them £10k to charity’, said user Cont_y_Llan.
‘Owen should top up that amount with £96k of his own money for his charity…’, demanded MrHyperCritic.
Michael photographed with host Stephen before his Deal or No Deal episode aired, and Stephen expressed his delight on Instagram.
‘I’m very excited because TONIGHT is our Deal or No Deal Christmas Special! It’s with the absolutely brilliant @TheMichaelOwen, who brought along his family and friends to try to beat Scrooge himself… The Banker!’, he penned.
‘You’re not going to want to miss it!’
Catch up with Deal or No Deal on ITVX.