The Block's Adrian Portelli made $15m agreement with Channel Nine months ago: 'Strategic'

After revealing he had always planned on helping Maddy and Charlotte win The Block, it seems Adrian Portelli, the billionaire who purchased every home during the show's season finale on Sunday, had his history-making purchase locked in with Channel Nine for months. An insider has revealed to Yahoo Lifestyle that Adrian had an agreement with Nine to spend $15m on all five properties three months ago.

The owner of LMCT+ was having meetings with Nine back in August when rumours began circulating that he was set to buy every team's property. Our source tells us Adrian was "telling friends about his plans", adding, "It didn’t take long before word got out that he was going to buy the entire former resort."

Adrian Portelli and Nine made a deal three months ago that he'd buy all five houses on The Block

"The story that Adrian would snap up all of those resort-style houses never went away and it was increasingly more apparent as the final auction drew closer and closer," our insider says.

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"What made the 'arranged deal' so believable was that Adrian had told so many people specifics," they add. "A former Block contestant had been in Bali with mutual friends of Adrian’s and they had been told the reserve prices would be set low enough for him to buy all of the houses which would also cover the cost of how much Channel Nine bought the properties for in late 2023."

"There was so much foreshadowing in the lead up to The Block finale - it was impossible not to go into the finale thinking there was any other outcome," one former Block contestant shares. "Portelli was also telling people before the show even aired, 'I am going out with a bang.'"

The insider adds that while the business plan of LMCT+ is to be "quite noisy", and appear "effortless and care-free," but there was actually a lot of work that Adrian put into making this purchase work.

"A part of Adrian’s brand is to appear like he is throwing money around like it’s nothing, but mark my words he is a very smart businessman who is very strategic."

"His relationship with Channel Nine executives allowed him to have inside knowledge and that has happened behind the scenes from The Block for a decade. That finale was designed and was executed with enormous planning."

"There was far less media invited to the auction and Adrian was keen to dominate the aftermath - in terms of media interviews," the source continues, saying Adrian was the real star of the show, and fans will be talking about his $15m purchase for years to come.

'The noisiest sale in Block history'

In September, Yahoo Lifestyle reported that Adrian was keen to buy all five properties, adding that they would all have the same reserve price, which is exactly what happened on Sunday night.

“Adrian has been very vocal during discussions with the producers and has also told his close friends he will be buying the entire resort for his LMCT+ website for up to $15 million," the source told us back in September. "It will be the noisiest sale in Block history and that’s perfect for his business model."

'I made the girls win'

Many fans thought the show was 'rigged' to have Maddy and Charlotte win, and this only intensified after revealing on Nova 100's Jase & Lauren that he had a hand in choosing the auction order and told the girls to go last so he could ensure they won.

"When did you cook up the plan to buy them all?" Lauren asked Adrian.

"That was the buyer's domain," Adrian shared. "When I first went down there and I saw the actual compound itself with all the amenities. And, you know, I spoke to the producer. And, you know, essentially, if you bought all the houses, the amenities come for free. That was the goal. And then we just hand-selected the auction order, made sure the girls went last, so I could get them the win."

Jase jumped in, asking, "So, just to clarify, were all The Block contestants in on the plan?"

"No, no," Adrian said, adding, "It was just the girls. How good is that? The girls that are the most sweetest and innocent, were playing the game the best."

Taking to his Instagram Stories on Tuesday morning, Adrian hit back at accusations the show was 'rigged', saying that once The Block gets to the auctions, it's in the hands of the public, and anything can happen.

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"Yes, The Block is a TV series, however, once it gets to an auction, it's a public auction, and anyone from all over Australia can come and bid on these auctions, so it's no longer in the hands of the producers, the network or the contestants," he said. "Whatever happens, happens. If I want to bid $100m on a property that's worth $2m, I'm allowed to, I'm allowed to do whatever the freaking hell I want. It's a public auction, so suck it up.

"And stop having a sook. If you're not happy, you go make tens of millions of dollars, and then you can go bid on the houses and make someone else win. But it was my decision, I made the girls win, they were the best house, they were the best contestants, and that's a wrap."

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