Rugby World Cup 2015: Punter bets $400k on All Blacks

TAB bookmaker Mark Stafford with one million dollars. Photo / Greg Bowker.

A monster $400,000 has been slapped on the All Blacks to win the Rugby World Cup, the biggest bet in New Zealand history.

Standing to return the brave Kiwi $540,000 over the next 24 hours, TAB staff were floored by a landmark wager this morning which almost doubles the size of the previous record which stood for 13 years.

Mystery shrouds the person who has put down close to half-a-million dollars. The person was described as "vociferous about anonymity" and identified only as being from the North Island.

The size of the bet meant the punter had to wait overnight for a bank transfer to clear, but at 8.30am it was declared all on and the heftiest betting slip ever released in New Zealand was issued.

Bookmaker Mark Stafford says the TAB was gob-smacked.

"It's the biggest bet in our history. It's incredible. We did not see this coming because most of the money has been going on the Wallabies over the last few days," Stafford said.

"It's head-to-head, no margins involved. It's simply on the All Blacks beating the Wallabies tomorrow morning."

The person is granted odds of $1.35, the sheer size of the stake meant it had to go "to the top" of the TAB for clearance.

"It's a big bet, but the liability is only $140,000 so we don't need to sell a massive amount on the Wallabies to offset that," Stafford said.

"It began yesterday when the person called us to see if we would accept the bet. That's how most people who make big bets tend to play them.

"We said yes and had to go through the process of exchanging money. It was all issued this morning after the money arrived."

The New Zealand sports betting record has now been left for dust. The previous biggest bet was $220,000 put on Brazil to beat China in the 2002 Fifa World Cup.

This morning's bet also obliterates the previous biggest bet placed on this year's Rugby World Cup, when an Auckland punter only known as "Dave" placed $130,000 on the All Blacks to lose the World Cup. After making the bet before the start of the tournament, that person will collect $201,500 if the Wallabies win tomorrow morning.

Two other hefty bets of $50,000 and $20,000 have also been put on the All Blacks to lift the trophy - promising payouts of $62,500 and $30,000 respectively.

The TAB said the total amount of cash bet on this year's tournament won't be revealed just yet, but four years ago Kiwis wagered a staggering $30.2 million on the tournament.

The All Blacks are currently $1.35 favourites to beat the Wallabies. The Aussies are being offered at odds of $3. Stafford said 86 per cent of the money is on the All Blacks to win.

Stafford said the history between the sides and recent form had been major factors in deciding the odds for the final.

"It is just an expectation thing. There are teams that bring the best out of others," he said.

The agency has also taken into account team selections, injuries, fatigue, confidence and goal-kicking when offering odds.