New England store's free furniture promo in danger of backfiring spectacularly thanks to UConn basketball teams

After massive — and dramatic — wins in the Elite Eight both the UConn men and UConn women are just one win away from playing in the NCAA tournament final. For one New England furniture store, that reality could result in millions of dollars in lost profit. Jordan’s Furniture — a furniture chain in the multiple stats in New England — ran what is now looking like an extremely poorly thought out “UConn Championship Promotion” that is now just two wins away from paying out.

Here’s how it works: Any person who purchased “eligible merchandise” from Jordan’s between Jan. 20 and Feb. 16 would receive a rebate for their purchase — essentially making it free — if both UConn basketball teams played in their respective finals.

Well, following the UConn men’s dramatic late win over Duke , both teams remain just one win away from making Jordan’s pay out. It’s not the first time Jordan’s has bet on a New England team and lost big. The outlet ran the same promotion for the Boston Red Sox in 2007.

When the Red Sox won the World Series later that year, the furniture store paid out roughly $30 million , per the Hartford Courant. Jordan’s is able to mitigate some of those costs by taking out insurance to manage its risk. Jordan’s senior vice president of marketing Linda SanGiacomo told the Courant the store took out insurance on the UConn bet as well.