A depleted ten-man team led by the phenomenal Harry Kane defeated World Cup hosts Mexico in one of the greatest cathedrals of soccer, Estadio Azteca. As the Three Lions now leave for Miami to face fellow quarter-finalists Norway, the impact of the historic victory is being felt far beyond soccer, reaching even the boxing world. For starters, Ryan Garcia doesn’t seem happy. The English win has left the welterweight champion lighter by $100,000.

Expressing confidence that the unbeaten Mexican side will stop a buoyant English team that has been producing one of the tournament’s most thrilling games, Ryan Garcia entered into a wager with Queensberry Promotions’ Frank Warren. With England securing a win in a closely contested affair, it’s now over to Garcia to see if he will pay up on his wager.

“NEVER BET AGAINST FRANK WARREN! 💰👀,” read the X post from Boxing King Media. “Ryan Garcia threw down a $100K challenge… England beat Mexico 3-2, and Frank didn’t even have to lift a finger.”

That confidence stems from the fearsome reputation 74-year-old Warren has built over the years as a boxing promoter. Longtime boxing observers still recall the time when he reportedly placed £25,000 on a boxer he had seen at an unlicensed match. The Queensberry head famously got the fighter properly trained for his next bout and won the bet.

Beyond his personal wagers, Warren is known to have taken considerable business risks in his career. One notable instance came when he won the $41 million purse bid, the highest recorded in boxing history at the time, to promote the fight between Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte. Another came when he fielded a strong roster of Queensberry fighters and claimed a sweeping victory over rival Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing at the June 2024 Queensberry vs. Matchroom 5 vs. 5 event.

Given that history, Frank Warren confidently accepted Ryan Garcia’s offer, with the winner getting to choose the charity that would receive the $100k.

After the match ended, Warren promptly reminded Garcia, “There are a couple of brilliant UK charities I’m involved with – https://boxwise.uk/donate/ and https://debra.org.uk/donate-epidermolysis-bullosa/ 🥊.”

For his part, Garcia remained defiant, promising to respond by handing the number one-ranked welterweight contender and mandatory challenger to his title, Conor Benn, an Englishman, a crushing defeat. “I promise I will defeat Conor Benn and redeem Mexico to the point where England won’t be able to wake up 😲🔥,” he said.

Ryan Garcia: The fighter who never shies away from a wager

For Garcia, meanwhile, it will be the second instance in recent times in which he has lost a much-publicized bet. Earlier in April, during a livestream, the world champion was challenged by UFC’s top-ranked lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan to a $40k bet that he would not be able to drop one of his team members with a body shot.

Garcia tried but failed to knock the man down, technically losing the bet. The two sides later became involved in a much-publicized dispute, with each offering its own version of events. Afterwards, Tsarukyan told Garcia that he’s willing to pay him $100k for eight rounds of boxing or a million dollars if he could survive just one round in a mixed martial arts fight.

That’s one example of Garcia’s well-known tendency to enter into bets. For all the losses he recently suffered, the world champion allegedly made $10 million by betting $2 million on himself during the fight against Devin Haney two years ago. Garcia won the fight by a majority decision and reportedly netted $12 million.

It’s a different fact: despite making a fortune for himself, Garcia found himself embroiled in a major doping controversy that resulted in him being suspended and a further fine, highlighting a gambling nature that swings between high-stakes wins and costly losses.

After losing his money on the England vs. Mexico fight, the bigger question now is whether Ryan Garcia stays true to his word and hands Benn the second defeat of his career.

While the matchup has yet to be officially confirmed, it presents a great opportunity for Garcia to secure a statement win that could potentially inch him closer to the much-anticipated rematch with Devin Haney or Rolando Romero.