Mark Cuban Says His Black Amex Got Declined Buying a $140,000 Bottle of Champagne After Mavs Win in Miami — ‘Can I Please Spend Some Money?’

Winning an NBA championship usually means the hard part is over. For Mark Cuban, the celebration hit an unexpected timeout when American Express (AXP) refused to believe he was really trying to buy a six-figure bottle of champagne.

Billionaire entrepreneur, former Dallas Mavericks owner, and former “Shark Tank” investor Mark Cuban shared the story during a 2023 appearance on the “Knuckleheads” podcast with former NBA players Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles, recalling how his brand-new American Express Centurion Card — better known as the Black Card — was declined after the Mavericks won their first NBA championship in 2011.

A Champagne Order That Looked Too Good to Be True

After defeating the Miami Heat, the Mavericks celebrated at LIV nightclub inside the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. Cuban wanted to do something memorable for Finals MVP Dirk Nowitzki.

“I’m like, ‘Dirk, do we want to get this?’ He’s like, ‘F—k yeah we want to get this.’ So I go to the waitress, ‘Alright, we’ll take one,’” Cuban said.

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The bottle — a 15-liter Armand de Brignac “Ace of Spades” champagne — has become part of Mavericks lore. Cuban has estimated the cost at about $140,000, though LIV owner David Grutman later told ESPN the total was closer to $90,000 before a 22% gratuity.

As everyone waited for the champagne to arrive, Nowitzki started asking questions.

“Ten, 15 minutes go by. Dirk’s like, ‘Where’s the champagne? Where’s the champagne?’ I’m like, ‘Let me check,’” Cuban recalled.

Then came the surprise.

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“All of a sudden, the lady comes up: ‘Mr. Cuban, your card was declined.’ I’m like, ‘What the f—k? My card is declined?’”

‘Did You Watch the Game Tonight?’

The problem wasn’t a lack of money.

Cuban realized he had never activated his newly issued Centurion Card, and a sudden six-figure purchase looked suspicious enough to trigger fraud protections.

“So I had to go back into the back office of LIV with one of the managers,” Cuban said. “I’m drunk as s—t.”

The phone call with American Express wasn’t exactly smooth.

“They’re like, ‘How do we know this is Mark Cuban? How do we know this is real?’”

His response leaned into the night’s biggest headline. “I’m like, ‘Did you watch the game tonight? Let me just tell you to turn on the TV and see what’s going on’ — because we’re in Miami, right?”

Eventually, American Express approved the purchase.

“So finally, they approved it, got my bottle, and we were good,” Cuban said.

Grutman remembered the moment, too. Speaking with ESPN in 2013, he recalled Cuban trying to convince the company to process the payment with one simple request: “Can I please spend some money?”

Why Carry a Black Card?

The story is especially ironic because Cuban has spent years warning people against relying on credit cards.

“If you use your credit cards, you don’t want to be rich,” Cuban said during an appearance on “The Ramsey Show.”

But the card at the center of this story wasn’t an ordinary credit card.

The invite-only American Express Centurion Card is a charge card designed for high-net-worth clients. Rather than carrying a revolving balance, cardholders are generally expected to pay what they owe in full. The appeal isn’t borrowing money — it’s access.

Members receive a dedicated concierge, premium airport lounge access, elite hotel status, luxury travel benefits and exclusive experiences that aren’t available to most consumers. For someone constantly traveling for business, sports, and speaking engagements, those perks can be worth far more than the piece of metal in a wallet.

Which makes Cuban’s story even better.

One of the world’s most exclusive payment cards —built for people making extraordinary purchases — still needed a little convincing before approving a billionaire’s championship celebration.