The Apprentice 2024 winner odds: which candidate is bookies' favourite after first firing last night?

The first candidate on The Apprentice 2024 has been fired following the series 18 premiere on Thursday evening.

18 candidates are vying to impress Lord Sugar on the BBC one show as they compete for a £250,000 investment in their business. However, the billionaire business magnate was far from impressed with the performance of the boys team who lot the first challenge of the series.

After a heated boardroom debate, Lord Sugar fired the first candidate of the series, as those remaining became all the more determined to show off their skills in future challenges and avoid the fate of the shameful black cab ride home.

Who was fired on The Apprentice last night?

Oliver Medforth became the first candidate on The Apprentice series 18 to be fired after his team lost the corporate away day challenge in the Highlands.

The alcohol sales executive from Yorkshire bragged that he was a selling machine and promised to dominate in the sales tasks, but he failed to back up his words on the first episode of the series and was soon shown the door by Alan Sugar. This leaves 17 candidates in the show, and there is already a firm favourite pulling ahead of the pack.

Who is favourite to win The Apprentice 2024?

Officially, bookmakers won’t take bets on the outcome of The Apprentice 2024 as the show is pre-recorded and the winner will have already been chosen by Alan Sugar when the final was filmed last year.

However, as the identity of the winner is supposed to be kept secret until the final episode airs in April, Gambling.com has provided realistic odds for each candidate ahead of the show.

34 year old pie company director Paul Bowen, who supplies Manchester City FC with tasty pastries, is current favourite to win series 18. The Lancashire entrepreneur has been given odds of 2/1 (33.3%) of winning Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment.

Next favourite is online fitness coach Sam Saadet, from Essex, with a 3/1 (25%) shot. Sam is followed by another pie magnate, Phil Turner on 4/1 (20%), and pharmacist Amina Khan on 5/1 (16.7%).

The rest of the candidates are ranked as follows:

• Foluso Falade - 6/1 (14.3%)
• Rachel Woolford - 7/1 (12.5%)
• Noor Bouziane - 8/1 (11.1%)
• Dr Paul Midha - 10/1 (9.1%)
• Maura Rath - 12/1 (7.7%)
• Virdi Singh Mazaria - 14/1 (6.7%)
• Flo Edwards - 16/1 5.9%)
• Onyeka Nweze - 20/1 (4.8%)
• Tre Lowe - 22/1 (4.3%)
• Jack Davies - 25/1 (3.8%)
• Raj Chohan - 28/1 (3.4%)
• Steve Darken - 33/1 (2.9%)
• Dr Asif Munaf - 50/1 (2%)

Who is most likely to be fired next?

Gambling.com correctly had Oliver as the favourite to be fired first ahead of the series premiere last night, with odds of 2/1 (33%). He was followed by Steve Darken, who had odds of 3/1 (25%) and now moves into the danger zone as the next favourite to be fired.

Steve is a 37 year old management consultant from London. His case won’t have been helped by the fact that he was brought back into the boardroom after losing the first task, and has already been given a second chance by Lord Sugar.