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UES Man's Fantasy Football Bet Wins Him 3 Months of Free Rent

By Shaye Weaver | November 11, 2015 3:06pm
 Roommates Ryan, Matt and Noah (L-R) bet 3 months of rent on their fantasy football teams.
Roommates Ryan, Matt and Noah (L-R) bet 3 months of rent on their fantasy football teams.
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Instagram/noahh516

In a city with soaring rent prices, it's no surprise that free rent became the coveted prize of one Fantasy Football bet between friends.

Noah Walsh, a 25-year-old Upper East Sider, won three months of free rent at his new two-bedroom duplex on East 85th Street after he defeated his roommates, Matt and Ryan, at Fantasy Football earlier this year.

The roomies moved into the apartment in September, and Walsh would normally be responsible for the $1,450 in rent for his room. The apartment itself costs $4,095 per month total, and the rent includes office or recreational space, laundry on-site and a gym membership discount.  

"The whole thing was ridiculous but it felt fantastic," Walsh said, admitting he had spent $400 on a bar tab the night he won.

"It came down to the final game too," he continued. "It was really crazy. The irony of it is, I didn’t have that great of a team. I just got lucky."

The three roommates made the bet during one of their Tuesday night outings before football season began.

For his roster, Walsh, who works as a sales director, selected players like Aaron Rodgers, Jimmy Graham, Julio Jones, and set Mark Ingram as his running back.

"Nine times out of 10, my team wouldn't have won, but the stars aligned," he said. "My roommates are not too happy."

Originally, the trio wagered six months of rent, but when Walsh won, he felt bad because it would make it more difficult for his friends to get by.

"Six months buries you in a hole," he said. "I said 'If we stick with this, only one of us is going out.'"

This wasn't the first time the roommates have placed high-stakes bets.

The first year they made a bet together, the winner got free drinks for two weeks. Last year, Matt's fantasy football team lost and he had to get a belly ring, Walsh said.

"It's a really good conversation starter at the bar," he said. "There is a way to pull it off and Matt did it really well."

For the next round, the loser will have to get a large vinyl wall decal of the winner from Fathead, and place it next to his bed.

"It'll be terrifying," Walsh said.