Virgin Money launches Manchester United Cash ISA paying 3.2% – but there’s a catch

Savers will earn a table-topping rate of 3.2%, but only if United win the Premier League and the Emirates FA Cup. Is it worth taking a punt?

Virgin Money has launched a new one-year fixed-rate Cash ISA offering savers the chance to earn a whopping 3.2%, but there’s a catch – you’ll have to put your faith in United winning the double this season.

The Manchester United Double Champions Cash ISA will only pay the juicy return if the team bags both the Premier League and the FA Cup trophies in 2017/18.

If the team doesn’t manage it, savers will get a much lower 1.2% return on their pot.

So, is it worth taking a punt?

What the account offers

You can open the Manchester United Double Champions Cash ISA with just £1 and can save up to the 2017/18 ISA tax-free allowance of £20,000 as well as any transfers of previous years ISAs.

Your cash is guaranteed to earn a fixed rate of 1.2% in the account for a fixed term up to 24 September 2018.

Plus, each month your account is open you’ll get 10 entries into a United Rewards prize draw, with the chance to win matchday tickets and signed shirts. For every £50 you hold in the account you’ll get an extra entry into the draw.

The rate of interest you earn will be boosted by 2%, taking it to 3.2% if United win both titles next year and will apply until the end of the term of the bond.

Initial interest will be paid on 5 August 2018 and the remaining interest on maturity on 24 September 2018.

Interestingly, this is the second gimmicky account Virgin Money has launched this season, so we reckon it must be popular with savers.

How the guaranteed rate compares

The best way to compare the Virgin Money Manchester United Double Champions Cash ISA is to see how the guaranteed rate stacks up.

Given how dismal savings rates are at the moment the 1.2% guaranteed return is a top 10 return but it can be beaten by five other deals – including one offered by Virgin Money!

Al Rayan Bank currently offers the best one-year fixed rate Cash ISA with an anticipated profit rate of 1.35% on deposits starting from £1,000.

Charter Savings Bank offers the next best return of 1.31% on deposits from £1,000 and Virgin Money offers the third best deal of 1.3% on deposits from £1.

So, by taking out the Virgin Money Manchester United Double Champions Cash ISA you’ll earn a guaranteed 0.15% less if United lose.

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Odds of getting the 2% bonus

So, what are the odds of United winning both competitions and you earning a 2% bonus?

The best we can do is look at what the bookies think is going to happen.

A quick search of some popular betting sites provided odds of between 14/1 to 20/1. This suggests that the people betting on the outcome consider it quite unlikely.

So, by taking out the Virgin Money Manchester United Double Champions Cash ISA you will get a guaranteed 1.2% rate with the outside chance of earning an extra 2%.

This isn’t something that adds up to us!

How to really be in a win-win situation

If you reckon United will win the double, the bond probably isn’t the best place to bet on this happening.

You’d be better off going for the top one-year Cash ISA and bet some of the additional interest you’ll earn at the bookies.

We’ve taken a look at how this scenario would work for a £2,000 deposit and the less generous odds of 20/1.

We will put £10 of the deposit down on a stake at the bookies, giving a £1,990 deposit left to put in the Al Rayan account. If that stake wins we pocket £200.

Here’s what you end up with in the gimmicky Virgin Money account versus going for the top deal and betting a small stake.

As you can see the real win-win situation involves chasing the best savings rate and placing a small bet yourself.

If betting isn’t really your thing but you still fancy an account that offers the chance of a bigger prize or bonus you should look into Premium Bonds. There’s no guaranteed return but you could win £1 million.

Alternatively, you could try the OakNorth Lottery Bond, which is a mix of Premium Bonds and a traditional savings account.  Here, you’ll earn a guaranteed rate of 0.7% and are in with a chance of winning up to £75,000.

Or there’s the Brexit Bond from Family Building Society, which pays a guaranteed rate of 1%. You can bag a bonus of 2% if you correctly guess whether the pound will be stronger or weaker after we leave the EU.

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