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Last jackpot winner REVEALED!
Got questions about your $600 million US Powerball lottery ticket?
The US Powerball has stormed past its own jackpot record leaving two very important questions. Will it beat Mega Millions’ March 2012 $656 million world record and will its $600 million plus top prize be won tonight? Get your Powerball tickets online now with theLotter and you may be sitting on cloud nine tomorrow morning!
Throughout April and into May 2013, the US Powerball and America’s Mega Millions have been way ahead of the lottery pack, each offering massive 9-figure jackpots for several weeks in a row! Mega Millions’ $190 million jackpot was won on Friday by extremely lucky winners in New Jersey and Virginia, but the US Powerball has continued growing since Wednesday’s $360 million top prize went without a winner, moving from $475 million, to $550 million and now to an incredible $600 million as a slew of ticket sales have been taken into account!
theLotter has been tracking the progress of each of these American lottery giants to see what kind of magical May mayhem they would create – as lotto fans around the world have vied for a piece of these delicious American pies it’s been exciting to say the least.
Check out the latest version of our Record-Making Rollovers infograph and make sure to get your $600 million US Powerball tickets on theLotter tonight to be part of this record-breaking draw!
How big does a jackpot have to grow to catch mass media attention? Apparently $360 million is enough, as the US Powerball top prize became the latest hot topic to set major news and social media outlets buzzing with excitement. As there were no winners on Wednesday night, the popular American lottery announced a $475 million minimum jackpot that is now a $600 million minimum jackpot for this Saturday’s draw. Get your ticket online today to avoid missing out!
You don’t have to be a lottery expert to know that $600 million is a life-changing lottery prize! After taking off from a starting sum of $40 million and rolling over a total of thirteen times, each unclaimed jackpot since April 3rd has added at least $10 million to the next US Powerball draw—and now the top prize is even growing between draws!
The estimated jackpot for this Saturday’s Powerball draw now stands at $600 million and some quick calculations will reveal that the intra-draw increases have themselves been growing! In fact, the most recent jump was worth more than Friday’s Mega Millions $190 million jackpot – $115 million before ticket sales were taken into account and a total of $240 million by current estimates. This enormous leap comes close on the heels of $90 million and $48 million increases in the prize pool between earlier Powerball draws.
ranking at #1 on theBig list of the world’s biggest lotteries almost every week this year;
offering the two largest jackpots of 2013 so far ($338 million in March and $217 million in February);
its progress as measured against fellow US lottery and world record jackpot holder Mega Millions (which had its own $190 million jackpot on Friday); and
what Powerball players will see on their tickets.
The videos below show what American news programmes had to say before the $588 million record-breaking Powerball draw in November 2012 and what caught their eye before Wednesday’s $360 million jackpot that went unclaimed:
With over a decade of experience satisfying the lotto needs of players around the world, theLotter continues to connect global players to the biggest draws. When the jackpots get to the level of Saturday’s $600 million US Powerball, news outlets and fair weather fans of the biggest jackpots are welcome to join in the fun!
In April 2012, B.U. from London was similarly inspired after seeing America’s Mega Millions set the current world jackpot record. He signed up with theLotter and on only his fifth online lottery purchase, walked away $1 million richer after winning the US Powerball second place prize! Had B.U. chosen the Power Play option, he would have doubled his winnings.
With a record breaking estimated US Powerball jackpot of $600 million for this Saturday’s draw, lottery fans from around the world are making sure they get their tickets in time. As we’re in the calm before the money storm, let’s take a second to look at what the US Powerball has been up to lately and what you can expect to see on your Powerball lottery ticket.
The last 18 months have been pretty special for the US Powerball lottery. In January 2012, Powerball officials announced some major changes, including the introduction of a new $40 million starting jackpot aimed at bringing the American lottery its first $500 million top prize and a $1 billion jackpot by 2022. Eleven months later, the first part of this prophecy came true with a $588 million US Powerball jackpot that was shared by winners from Arizona and Missouri in November 2012.
In 2013, barely a week has passed without the US Powerball holding the top spot on theBig list of the world’s biggest lotto jackpots. The famous US lottery awarded a $217 million prize to Virginia couple Dave and Nancy Honeywell on February 6th, and followed this up with a 12-rollover run that granted a huge $338 million jackpot to Pedro Quezada of Passaic, New Jersey, in the draw held on March 23rd.
The month of March came to a close with a relatively quiet $50 million prize and all eyes began to focus on California’s imminent arrival onto the Powerball scene. As the most populous state in the US, everyone knew there would be big jackpots, although some doubted how many rollovers could happen with so many players available to choose a winning combination. April proved the skeptics wrong, as the US Powerball overtook Mega Millions’ head start at the top of theBig, before really getting into its stride with rollover jumps of between $21 million and $25 million that soon turned into leaps of between $31 million and $240 million between draws!
That brings us to the middle of May and the chance to win $600,000,000 in this Saturday’s US Powerball lottery draw.
With 15 lotteries being drawn this weekend, there are a lot of numbers to be picked and jackpots to be won. Use this handy infographic so that you can choose the best way to take home a prize!
From Australia to South Africa, there are tons of lotteries being drawn this weekend. Looking for the biggest jackpots in the world? No problem, Powerball and Mega Millions are atop theBig list this weekend with top prizes that are beyond $100 million! Are you searching for the lotteries with the best cost-benefit ratio? South Africa Powerball and Brazil – Dupla Sena lotteries are sitting comfortably in the first spots on theSmart list this weekend.
Use your iPad to win yourself a lottery fortune with the introduction of theLotter’s NEW iPad App! Join us as we take a look at Apple’s iProduct revolution and we’ll tell you how you can win the world’s most popular tablet computer.
It seems like forever since Apple rocked the world with the first iPod back in 2001. With its mechanical scroll wheel and 1,000-song capacity, the music player became an instant attraction for techies and music-lovers alike. At the time, there were two types of people – those who owned an iPod (showing off the now infamous white in-ear headphones) and those who wanted an iPod (sporting green faces full of envy).
If the original iPod was a phenomenon, the first iPhone had to be exceptional to compete with a relatively established mobile phone market. Launched in 2007, the iPhone combined a sleek shell, a large touchscreen display and smooth functionality to become an instant hit! A year later, the App Store opened and Apple had left its mobile competitors wondering where to go.
After the iPhone, Apple’s loyal fans eagerly anticipated ‘Apple’s Tablet’, and in 2010, the iPad was finally born. More than 300,000 were sold on the first day, and 3 million iPads had been bought within just 80 days!
We are now up to the fourth generation iPad and the App Store offers more than 800,000 Apps, but for lottery fans, Apple’s amazing story and millions of dollars of investment have led up to one very special moment: the launch of theLotter’s NEW iPad App!
theLotter has operated a convenient and secure online lotto service for over a decade. Players from around the globe can buy lottery tickets online for more than 40 of the world’s most popular draws and can check results for over 70 lotteries. Since February 2012, lottery fans have been able to do so directly on their iPhone. Now they can enjoy the latest lottery action on an iPad too, adding yet another dimension to playing it global!
To celebrate the launch of theLotter’s NEW iPad App, we are giving away two brand new iPad 4s. A raffle will be held on 1st May 2013, and every Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond theLotter VIP member will automatically be entered into the draw!
Check your theLotter account to see if you have the 201 or more VIP points that will make you eligible for a chance to win a beautiful iPad 4 just in time for summer. To boost your VIP points, simply play any of our great state, national and international lotteries, or refer a friend to theLotter through our Tell A Friend program to receive 10 VIP points and $25 in bonus money. Activate an old subscription and you will immediately receive 25 VIP points, or deposit funds in advance for 1 VIP point per dollar while ensuring that you can always play the biggest jackpots happening now!
In our last blog, we put Spanish Raffle Lotteries under the microscope, zooming in to dissect a typical Loteria Nacional Extra ticket. This week we’re zooming out to look at the bigger picture, and asking what is the difference between a raffle and a lottery?
‘Lottery’ by definition
Various definitions exist to describe what a lottery is, yet what they all have in common is that there is a prize (or collection of prizes), a chance of winning that prize, and a fee for ownership of such a chance.
Consider any of the more than 70 world lottery draws featured on theLotter, and you will see that these three characteristics are present for them all, whatever twist they take on the common ‘choose six from 49’ lottery structure.
All raffles are lotteries…
Loteria Nacional is Spain’s official lottery organisation, and has become famous for its annual draw Loteria de Navidad, the world’s largest lottery that offers an unrivalled guaranteed prize pool of €2.52 billion! Also known as the Spanish Christmas Lottery, in reality Loteria de Navidad uses a raffle format, that is replicated by Loteria del Nino and by monthly Loteria Nacional Extra draws.
If we use our definition of what makes a lottery (prize, chance, fee), it makes sense that Loteria Nacional calls these draws ’Loterias’. In fact, for the Loteria Nacional Extra – Almeria AECC draw coming up on March 2nd:
there are 37,151 prizes (from 15 prize categories),
players have a better than 1 in 3 chance of winning, and
Raffle lotteries can be distinguished from non-raffle lotteries in that the number of tickets is usually limited, and that each available prize will be attached to only one ticket or share. For example, several ticket-holders can claim part of the US Powerball jackpot, but only one share will win €5 million for having el premio especial in the upcoming Loteria Nacional Extra draw!
When you enter to win part of the €84 million prize pool this weekend, remember that all raffles are lotteries but not all lotteries are raffles, all humans are mammals but not all mammals are humans, all apples are fruit but not all fruit are apples, and all lotteries have fixed odds but not all lotteries will make as many winners or distribute as many prizes as this weekend’s Loteria Nacional Extra draw!
Loteria de Navidad and Loteria del Nino open and close the lottery holiday season every year with a whirlwind of excitement that attracts worldwide attention. The nature of Spain’s Loteria Nacional raffle is to grow and multiply, and similar raffles present themselves throughout the year. theLotter is proud to offer our players their chance to win – join us as we take a scientific approach and dissect a Loteria Nacional Extra ticket to learn more.
As a Spanish Raffle that is delivered by the lottery organisation behind Loteria de Navidad and Loteria del Nino, the monthly Loteria Nacional Extra draws offer an exciting raffle format, an enormous guaranteed prize fund, excellent odds of winning and that little bit extra.
1. The ticket code, ranging from 00000 – 99999
One hundred thousand raffle tickets are printed for every Loteria Nacional Extra raffle draw, with a code from 00000 – 99999 printed on each of its 10 shares. Loteria Nacional produces 10 copies of each full ticket and allows the purchase of an individual share, known in Spanish as a decimo.
2. The lottery number and year for the upcoming draw
Connected to every Loteria Nacional Extra raffle is a good cause or charity that will receive a percentage of the draw proceeds [separate to the guaranteed prize fund!]. The chosen charity’s logo is on the left hand side of each month’s ticket.
In 2012, February’s draw was dedicated to Cruz Roja (the Red Cross); in March and April the Loteria Nacional Extra charitable contribution is dedicated to regional branches of the AECC – Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (Spanish Association for Cancer Prevention).
3. The series numberbetween 1-10
Three balls are selected to decide 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prizes from a collection of 100,000 that each bear a unique five-digit code from 00000 – 99999. The three five-digit codes selected in the draw decide 15 prize categories. Two further single digit balls, with a number from 0-9, are then selected to determine the Reintegro (refund) prizes. For full details of this month’s prize breakdown, visit Loteria Nacional Extra Results.
If you have a full series, i.e. one fully copy, of a first prize ticket in March’s Loteria Nacional Extra raffle, you are guaranteed a €1 million prize!
4. The decimo number between 1-10
A defining feature of the Loteria Nacional Extra is an additional, inflated top prize, which will go to el premio especial; a unique share from one copy, from all ten tickets that bear the first prize winning five-digit code. In a standard** Loteria Nacional Extra draw, the chosen decimo is worth €5 million!
A regular decimo, i.e. one tenth of one copy, of a first prize ticket in March’s Loteria Nacional Extra raffle, guarantees the holder a €100,000 prize!
5. The calendar date for the upcoming draw
Loteria Nacional Extra raffles are held throughout the year, and it is important to know which draw you are entering as some draws offer larger guaranteed prize funds. As an example, in a standard Loteria Nacional Extra raffle, there is a guaranteed total prize fund of at least €84 million, but April’s Loteria Nacional Extra, dedicated to the AECC in Zafra, Badajoz, has a larger than usual total prize fund of €105 million and will award an astounding €14,870,000 to the holder of el premio especial.
6. The ticket identifier
Loteria Nacional Extra has a total of 17 prize divisions, and offers players a better than 1 in 3 chance of winning one of 37,151 guaranteed prizes. Your ticket identifier is important to validate your ticket when you win.
Having dissected the Loteria Nacional Extra ticket, it is possible to say that the monthly raffles live up to their place alongside seasonal stars, Loteria de Navidad and Loteria del Nino, in the Loteria Nacional raffle family. In also dedicating a share of Loteria Nacional Extra’s revenues to worthwhile charitable causes, there is even an extra reason to buy a ticket online for the next Loteria Nacional raffle today, with an exclusive theLotter discount when you buy four or more tickets.
Here I go again, I hear those trumpets blow again, All aglow again, Taking a chance on love… Here I slide again, About to take that ride again, Starry eyed again, Taking a chance on love
Taking a Chance on Love, Frank Sinatra
These lyrics were sung by Frank Sinatra, a man who defined love and luck, both in song and in his personal life, across several generations of music fans. In many ways, the quest to find true love or win a major jackpot are similar in that the pursuer is ‘taking a chance on…’ statistically rare yet entirely possible events.
As anyone acquainted with the world of online will testify, looking for love in the wrong places is the equivalent to trying to win the lottery without buying a ticket! Assuming that you are consistently looking for love in the right places, or looking to win the lottery and actually buying lottery tickets regularly, what are the odds of finding true love or winning a jackpot, and which is more likely?
We already saw some lottery mathematics in our recent blog: A Little Lottery Secret – The Systematic Form. We can use the same calculation (as we used to work out the number of lines in Lisa’s systematic form) to determine the odds of winning a classic 6/49 lottery. After plugging in all the elements of the formula, it turns out that the probability of winning a 6/49 jackpot is 1:13,983,816
And what about the odds of finding true love?
Of course, this all depends on your definition of true love. A hopeless romantic who believes that their one true soul mate is out there somewhere, is playing with odds of close to 1:7,000,000,000, assuming that it could be anyone on the planet but themselves.
A more realistic approach is given in How to Find a Spouse: A Problem in Discrete Mathematics with an Assist from Calculus. In this paper, the authors focus on finding the best possible match from a defined set of candidates and the best strategy to do so. They advise letting approximately 37% of the group pass you by (i.e. avoid marrying the girl next door or your high school sweetheart), and selecting the next candidate who is better than all those in this first group. Taking this path to finding love offers, according to love mathematics, roughly a 1:3 chance of finding your best match.
So, finding your soul mate is more difficult than winning a classic 6/49 lottery, which in turn is more difficult than finding your most suitable available mate, which has 37% success rate when approached correctly.
Whether it’s a win in love or lottery you want for this Valentine’s week, we wish you all the luck in the world in finding what you seek!
I walk around with a horseshoe, In clover I lie, And brother rabbit of course, You better kiss your foot goodbye… On that ball again, I’m riding for a fall again, I’m gonna give my all again, Taking a chance on love
Every lottery fan dreams of winning the jackpot in their favourite lotto. Using a systematic form is the smart way to win big with or without the main prize!
We are often asked ‘what are the lottery systems that work?’
Well, theLotter regulars know a little secret about how to play the lottery in a smart and efficient way, while increasing their chances of winning and the amount they receive when they do. This little lottery secret is using a systematic form and it is available in select lotteries to all players on theLotter!
A systematic form generates all the possible combinations for your chosen lottery, based on between six and eleven numbers that you select. Our system does all the hard work for you, so you don’t need to worry about entering Grandma’s birthday or your wedding anniversary correctly on multiple lines every time you play.
Although systematic forms are not available for US lotteries, players on theLotter are able to use a systematic form in EuroMillions, Europe’s most popular lottery, with a selection range of 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 numbers, and various systematic forms are also available for lotteries from the following countries:
Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Russia and Sweden.
Let us take Italy’s SuperEnalotto as an example:
Lisa loves all things Italian and she especially loves Italy’s SuperEnalotto lottery. A sentimental sort, Lisa has eight numbers that she holds dear, each of equal importance in her life. She wouldn’t dream of favouring some numbers over others but SuperEnalotto only needs six numbers. Not to mention that Lisa would be distraught if she entered one wrong!
By using a systematic form on theLotter, Lisa can enter every combination of six numbers out of her special eight, giving her 28 lines in the SuperEnalotto, without repetition or mistake, at the click of a button. Why 28 lines?
Here’s the lottery mathematics:
To calculate the number of combinations for a 6 number series out of a set of 8 numbers, where order is not important [i.e. how many lines in Lisa’s ticket] we use the calculation:
nCr = n! / (r!(n-r)! )
where n = no. in series, r = no. in set
With our numbers this is:
8C6 = 8! / (6!(8-6)!)
= 8! / (6!*2!)
= 40,320 / (720*2)
= 40,320 / 1440
Lines in Lisa’s Ticket = 28
Even if Lisa had 11 special numbers and wanted to buy a SuperEnalotto ticket with every combination, our system could provide her with the 462 lines* that would be needed to fulfill her request!
Here is an example of how Lisa could win big with an 8 number systematic form:
Lisa’s chosen numbers were 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, and the winning SuperEnalotto numbers ended up being 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. One of her tickets would win the jackpot, and she would have 28 winning combinations in total, distributed as follows**:
Match 6
1
Match 5
12
Match 4
15
Now let us assume that the SuperEnalotto jackpot is worth €10 million, matching 5 numbers is worth €100,000, and matching 4 numbers is worth €1,000, Lisa’s winnings look like this:
Match 6
1
€ 10,000,000
€ 10,000,000
Match 5
12
€ 100,000
€ 1,200,000
Match 4
15
€ 1,000
€ 15,000
GRAND TOTAL
€ 11,215,000
As you can see, Lisa’s winnings grow with a systematic form because when her numbers come in, they don’t just allow her to win once – she wins multiple times!
Visit our all lotteries play page to use a systematic form with your favourite lottery from one of the 12 countries mentioned above, or the exciting EuroMillions lotto. Think bigger when you’re playing it global with a systematic form (a lottery system that works for you) and you could be celebrating a big win of your own thanks to this little lottery secret.
Now for more lottery nerdy stuff…
* For the number of combinations for a 6 number series out of a set of 11 numbers, where order is not important:
11C6 = 11! / (6!(11-6)!)
= 11! / (6!*5!)
= 39,916,800 / (720*120)
= 39,916,800 / 86,400
= 462
** To work out how many lines will match 6, 5, 4, etc. in our example, we use the calculation:
When I was just a little girl, I asked my mother, what will I be? Will I be pretty? Will I be rich? Will I win the lottery? Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be…
Alright, so Doris Day’s famous lyrics don’t go quite like that, but that is the spirit of the Spanish Christmas raffles Loteria de Navidad and Loteria del Nino. The first is the world’s biggest lottery that celebrated a landmark bicentennial, on 22nd December 2012, by giving away €2.52 billion in prize money. The second is known as ‘the Little One’ and it closed a particularly special festive lottery season on 6th January 2013, with €840 million of its own to dish out.
And what connects Spain’s Loteria Nacional’s annual delicacies with other seasonal super draws like Brazil’s Mega da Virada lottery, which distributed a R$244.7 million main prize, or the EuroMillions UK Christmas and New Year’s Millionaire Raffles that made 50 millionaires in the space of one week?
Well, as impressive as their jackpots, second prizes and winning odds undeniably are, it is actually the sense of community and tradition that binds these annual lotteries to each other and to their loyal fans. It is about knowing that 98% of your compatriots hold onto a ticket and a dream of winning El Gordo in the Spanish Christmas Lottery. It is about reaching higher as a nation to push a New Year’s Eve prize up by R$50 million in a mere matter of weeks. It is about being one of 50 guaranteed millionaires to join more than 200 others created during the past year as a new year brims with potential.
theLotter is proud to have celebrated its 10 Year Anniversary in 2012 and to remain at the centre of a vibrant online lottery community that continues to grow. theLotter is also proud that in its newest tradition, the Loteria del Nino raffle:
our players took home more than €42,000 in prizes
they beat the official 1 in 3 odds as 1 in 2.5 shares collected a prize, and
1 in 2 theLotter players won in ‘the Little One’
As theLotter wishes heartfelt congratulations to all of its Christmas and New Year winners, we remind our online lottery community of the traditional Spanish refrain ‘its health that really matters’ while looking forward to future lottery successes together!
2013 is finally here and theLotter is looking forward to another year of providing secure access to the world’s best lotteries and biggest jackpot prizes. Keep reading for some top tips to make the most out of playing the lottery online.
Home and Away – The world is more accessible than ever before. You don’t have to be called Columbus to visit far off lands, or wait months for news from the other side of the globe. When Mega Millions created the world’s largest ever jackpot in March 2012, it drew attention in the U.S. and far beyond as the main prize grew to an astounding $656 million. In fact, thanks to online lotto service theLotter.com, lottery fans are able to buy Mega Millions tickets from the comfort of their own homes, whether in Africa, Asia or Australia.
Learn and Experiment – From painting, to yoga, to sky-diving, everyone should have a passion in life. Our passion is providing access to the excitement of playing online lotteries in a convenient, informed and safe way. We offer over 40 lotteries from state, national and continental lottery organisations, and provide results and information for more than 70 lotteries from around the world. theLotter looks to add new lotteries that we know our customers will love, such as Loteria del Nino, an exciting Spanish raffle lottery that takes place annually on January 6th.
Save and Win – Loyalty is an important character trait and one that should be rewarded. When you play a lotto online with theLotter, you have the option to select a multi-draw ticket for 5, 10, 25 or 52 consecutive draws, saving up to 25% off the cost of your purchase. Alternatively, you can buy a subscription to your favourite lotteries to receive every 10th ticket free and to ensure you never miss a draw. There is nothing better than that winning feeling and who knows when lady luck will choose you to be a jackpot winner!
Volunteer and Donate – One of the best New Year resolutions is to make space in your life for others. Modern life is so busy and many of us have multiple demands on limited resources. Winning big in a lottery is a great way to free up some time to help those less fortunate. theLotter is proud to offer a donation service for those customers feeling philanthropic. What’s more, we will match any donation made through theLotter to double the impact of your generosity!
Apple launched iPhone5, British Princess Kate Middleton announced she was pregnant with a potential royal heir, and Barack Obama was chosen for a second presidential term. In 2012, the world was introduced to Honey Boo Boo and Fifty Shades of Grey, and Gangnam Style was the internet sensation that got everyone dancing. Most importantly, 21st December 2012 has come and gone, and despite doomsday declarations the Earth is still spinning away!
2012 was also an important year in the lottery world, with four major lotteries enjoying record-breaking jackpots and raffle-induced revelry. Yours truly, theLotter, celebrated its 10th Anniversary by offering amazing lottery discounts and launching a brand new site. Join us as we look back on 2012’s top lottery highlights and look forward to an exciting 2013 at theLotter.com
Record Lottery Jackpots in 2012
Mega Millions Fever
The USA Mega Millions is known for massive prizes. So, when a $363 million jackpot went without a winner in March 2012, every lottery fan and his mother wanted a piece of the rollover draw to follow. In just four days, the Mega Millions main prize jumped from $476 million, to $500 million, to $540 million, to $600 million, eventually ‘settling down’ at $656 million – the world’s largest ever jackpot!
On March 30th, it was announced that three lucky ticket holders, from Kansas, Illinois and Maryland, would each receive $218 million before taxes.
U.S. Powerball Prophecy
On 15th January 2012, lottery officials at the U.S. Powerball publicised an ambitious target of a $500 million jackpot by the end of the year. After a summer-to-autumn run of 14 consecutive rollovers, the popular USA lottery stood at $425 million, guaranteeing a new record. In the days that followed, lottery lovers, aware of Mega Millions’ four-day spike, took the U.S. Powerball to $588 million, proving the power of the Powerball profits as well as its prophets. A new personal best, the jackpot was split between two winners from Arizona and Missouri, on 28th November 2012.
Check out our U.S. Powerball infograph for more information, and stay tuned to see if the lottery’s second prediction, of the world’s first $1 billion jackpot by 2022, will also come true!
EuroMillions Reaches Cap
As USA lotteries hit the headlines in 2012, Europe had a choice – to rest on its lottery laurels or stand up to be counted. EuroMillions has a jackpot cap of €190 million* (worth approximately $250 million) which, once reached, is only available for one draw and one rollover before it is distributed to second prize winners. The European lottery had just such a decisive draw on 10th August 2012, and one lucky winner finally won the first ever €190 million jackpot.
*New rules from 2012 meant that once the €190 million jackpot cap was reached, a new jackpot cap of €195 million was set.
Australia’s Oz Lotto on Race Day
In Australia, the first Tuesday in November is Melbourne Cup Day. The world-famous horse race is dubbed ‘the race that stops a nation’ as it holds the country’s attention and for many is a public holiday. On 6th November 2012, Australia’s Oz Lotto drew the affectionate comparison ‘the jackpot that stops a nation’, as lottery estimates put the main prize at over AU$100 million for a draw that this year coincided with the Melbourne Cup.
A strong finish catapulted the jackpot to AU$112 million, a new Oz Lotto and Australian lottery record that was split between three single ticket holders and an 80-person syndicate.
Raffle Lotteries in 2012
100 Olympics Millionaires
As the world tuned into the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the UK National Lottery had an extra special treat in store – the UK Millionaire Raffle would create 100 millionaires as part of the EuroMillions UK draw held the same night. British lottery fans had contributed €2.7 billion of lottery money to support the international sporting event, and according to the UK National Lottery, creating 100 millionaires represented a small token of their appreciation.
The Spanish Christmas Lottery celebrated its bicentennial annual draw on 22nd December 2012. Known locally as Loteria de Navidad, the world’s biggest lottery offered an incredible €2.52 billion in prize money and a guaranteed jackpot fund of €720 million for the second year running!
In case you missed it, catch up on how the city of Spanish novelist Cervantes got in the mood for some early morning celebrations here.
theLotter in 2012
theLotter’s 10 Year Anniversary
This year was a particularly special year for theLotter, as your favourite online lotto service marked its 10th Anniversary with special offers for customers new and old. We are proud to reach the milestone of running a secure lottery service for ten years, allowing lottery lovers from around the world access to the world’s biggest jackpots and the best lotteries. We are particularly proud of one theLotter player who joined us in April 2012, to win a $1 million second prize in the U.S. Powerball on only his fifth online lotto purchase from theLotter.
theLotter.com Looking Forward
With the next decade in mind, theLotter.com underwent a major makeover in 2012, with a revamped homepage and mega menu, streamlined sign in and deposit, and simplified navigation through your private account. We also added Russian lotteries Gosloto 6/45 and Gosloto 7/49, which have already proven popular with players.
Join the fun in 2013 with your choice of over 40 lotteries to play online, starting with Loteria del Nino on January 6th, a Spanish raffle lottery which has winning odds of 1 in 3 and guarantees 60 €2 million jackpot prizes and 60 €1 million second prizes!
What was your lottery highlight of 2012 and which lotteries are you looking forward to playing in 2013? Leave a comment below, like us on Facebook, and keep playing it global with theLotter!
“The ability to reason the un-reason which has afflicted by reason saps my ability to reason, so that I complain with good reason of your infinite loveliness.”
Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes, Vol. 1, Ch. 1
Bewilderment, confusion and a lot of loveliness was in the air on a brisk Saturday morning in El Chorrillo, Alcala de Henares. Alcala’s most famous resident, Miguel de Cervantes, wrote Spain if not Europe’s most famous novel, Don Quixote. On 22nd December 2012, early on in Loteria de Navidad’s bicentennial draw, it became clear that 130 of the 180 jackpot winning tickets were sold to hundreds of neighbours in the small commuter town, on the outskirts of Madrid. Check Loteria de Navidad results here.
The Spanish Christmas Lottery’s El Gordo was worth a total of €720 million for the second year running, and was one of the first categories to be selected from the 1,807 ball prize-selection drum.
Although an amazing €520 million sparked early Christmas and New Year celebrations in Alcala, further Loteria de Navidad loveliness, worth €200 million, went to winners throughout Spain. In fact, some of the remaining 50 jackpot winning tickets reached as far as the Canary Islands, the Balearics and Ceuta, a Spanish town in northern Morocco.
Spain’s Christmas Lottery is always accompanied by festive fanfare and trademark traditions, including a three-hour ceremony where prizes and their associated numbers are sung by school children from the San Ildefonso School.
theLotter was over the moon that many of its Loteria de Navidad players won raffle prizes, having bought their tickets online at theLotter.com. Particular mention goes to four theLotter VIP Members who took home sizeable Spanish Christmas Lottery wins, even though tickets are not directly available in their home countries.
The highest theLotter win went to Gold VIP Member A.G. from Latvia, who took home $2,370. Two Russian theLotter players, who joined in 2012 and soon became Diamond and Platinum VIP Members received $1710 and $1553 respectively. A further Diamond VIP Member was especially happy to win $1158 in Loteria de Navidad, as buying lottery tickets online through theLotter was considerably easier and cheaper than boarding a flight to Spain from Sydney, Australia.
Spain’s Loteria Nacional tops and tails the Christmas holiday in style, with the Spanish Christmas Lottery’s raffle cousin, Loteria del Nino, providing a second chance to win big every winter. A third of the size of Loteria de Navidad in terms of number of tickets and total prize pool, El Nino punches above its weight to give 60 jackpot prizes worth €2 million for a full ticket, and a further 60 second prizes worth €1 million for a full ticket.
It is common for Spaniards who did not find luck in the Spanish Christmas Lottery to say ‘it’s health that really matters’, and with winning odds of 1:3, Loteria del Nino is an excuse to wait and see if players can be both healthy and happy in the year that follows.
theLotter is proud to offer both of Spain’s winter raffles for lottery lovers to enjoy all the loveliness, and to announce that you can buy your Loteria del Nino tickets online now.
The first girl to sing the El Gordo prize category in the history of the 200 year old raffle made a mistake at a crucial juncture in the 1986 draw. Today, one of Loteria de Navidad’s first female results vocalists works as a publicist at the agency that designed the Loteria de Navidad ad campaigns. Meet the Navidad girl turned woman who is still creating the fabric of dreams 26 years later!
On December 22nd, 1986, 13-year old Carolina found herself nervous and sweaty -palmed as her partner, David, pulled the wooden ball with the number 03,772 from one of the drums. After participating in the annual singing of Loteria de Navidad results for three years, Carolina was about to experience the highlight of her career as a member of the children’s chorus that delivers the good news to an enraptured Spanish population every Christmas season: the share-holders of ticket number 03,772 were the fortunate recipients of El Gordo, the jackpot prize.
Carolina prepared to sing out the first prize sum but instead of belting out the correct prize of 250 million pesetas, swallowed a zero and declared a prize of 25 million pesetas worth 100 times less than the actual win. Carolina wrapped up her career as a results singer that year, after having sung the results for a sixth category win, a second prize win, and the grand finale of a botched El Gordo prize. Read more about the official Loteria de Navidad results here.
Today, Carolina is a mother who knows that kids will be kids—even if there are millions at stake and the event is broadcast live across Spanish television channels that universally cover the annual draw. As one of the architects behind the 2012 Loteria de Navidad “fabric of dreams” campaign, Carolina found herself flooded by memories of her El Gordo debacle when the publicity firm where she works took on responsibility for the project.
“I have worked at the agency for five years, but the new campaign has brought these moments back with a renewed intensity,” Carolina admitted. Her coworkers turned Carolina into a talisman of good luck and decided to enter this year’s draw together with the “Loteria de Navidad girl”.
On December 23rd, 1986, Carolina found her El Gordo mix up on the front page of the Spanish press. “It’s not such a big deal,” 13-year old Carolina was quoted as saying. Twenty-six years later, Carolina confirms the observation made by her teenage self and is grateful that this single move set her on a trajectory to make dreams come true as a piece of the fabric of Loteria de Navidad dreams.
Spanish society is steeped in tradition dating back centuries, and that includes its annual holiday lottery super draw, the Loteria de Navidad. The first Loteria de Navidad draw was held in Cadiz in 1812. Since then, the December 22nd raffle results drawing has moved to Madrid and the jackpot has increased from 8,000 pesetas (€50) to €4 million, but the lottery structure, level of excitement and three-hour long results ceremony have remained the same.
The Loteria de Navidad is an integral part of the holiday season in Spain. Relics and replicas of the earliest Spanish National Lottery tickets, promotional materials and prizes are now on display as part of an exhibition of Spanish Christmas culture and history at the Palace of Linares in Madrid.
Intermixed between the Marquis de Linares’ 19th century dishes used for his Christmas feasts, imported French lamps and Chinese silks, there is a copy of a share, called a decimal in Spanish, from the first Loteria de Navidad draw. The share, which is displayed as part of the “Christmas on Paper” section of the exhibit, cost 150 pesetas in 1812. The first Loteria de Navidad jackpot winners held shares with the winning number 03604.
Over the course of two centuries, various traditions have developed surrounding the Loteria de Navidad draw. Offices, organizations and clubs often purchase full tickets and distribute shares to each member or employee. The crowds who fill the National Lottery Hall on December 22nd come dressed in lottery-themed costumes and hats for good luck. In 2011, some spectators donned colourful house costumes and with oversized Spanish Christmas Lottery shares acting as roof shingles. Others make hats or props out of old Loteria de Navidad tickets!
The Spanish Christmas Lottery is just one aspect of the holiday season that has quirky seasonal traditions. In the town of La Font de la Figura, which is near Valencia, locals ring in the New Year on December 31st by running through the streets in red underwear. All across Spain, people shove fistfuls of grapes into their mouths at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve. Spaniards try to fit in 12 grapes, one for each gong of the midnight bell. It is said that for each grape you fit in your mouth, you are entitled to another month of good luck!
No matter where you are in the world, you can take part in the beloved Spanish Christmas Lottery tradition at theLotter! Purchase shares for the annual Loteria de Navidad and enter to be one of 27.5 million expected winners! Benefit from reduced ticket prices when purchasing four or more tickets! Buy Loteria de Navidad tickets here.
The winning five-digit number in 1812 was 03604. The number 10644 won the “el gordo” jackpot prize in 1912. What raffle number will be chosen as the winning Loteria de Navidad ticket number in 2012? Find out on December 22nd!
Mark and Cindy Hill and their four children came forward on November 30th to collect an oversized check of epic proportions. The Missouri family holds one of the two winning tickets matching the November 28th $588 million US Powerball Lottery jackpot prize. While the Hills chose to come forward only two days after receiving news of their life-changing win, the second winner from Arizona could take as long as 180 days to make a public appearance.
Here are a few facts about the newest US Powerball millionaires and the biggest lottery winners in Missouri’s history!
1)Small-town pride – Mark and Cindy Hill hail from the town of Dearborn, Missouri, population: 500. The city was named after a Revolutionary War general, Henry Dearborn in 1882 and the record-breaking US Powerball jackpot win was the first major event in the city’s history. The Hills announced their life-changing win in the local high school gymnasium, where they had first met in the 1970s. The Hills are not the first small-town Midwestern millionaires this year. In March 2012, Merle and Patricia Butler, from Red Bud, Illinois (population: 3,683) won a third of the world’s largest jackpot, a $656 million Mega Millions prize.
2) Ponies and Camaros – Cindy Hill insists that the six family-members are still “normal human beings…as common as anybody. We just have a little bit more money.” However, there is no denying that their Christmas will be a little merrier this year than in past years. In addition to setting up college funds for their children and grandchildren, the Hills hope to take their youngest child Jaiden, who they adopted from China six years ago, to see the ocean for the first time. And of course, the Christmas wish lists are more extravagant this year – Jaiden is hoping to find a pony under the tree and Mark would like a red Camaro.
3) The Golden Years – Mark and Cindy Hill are the latest in a long line of lucky grandmas and grandpas to strike it rich with the lottery this year! In addition to 6 year-old adopted daughter, Jaiden, the Hills have three adult children and a growing number of grandchildren! In February 2012, Louise White, an 81-year grandmother from Rhode Island won a $336 million US Powerball jackpot, the single largest cash payment in the lottery’s history. Then, in early November, California grandmother Julia Cervera discovered a Californa Super Lotto ticket worth $23 million that was about to expire in her car! She had completely forgotten about her ticket until a friend recognized her daughter, who had purchased the ticket, on security footage publicized in search of the mystery winner!
4) Quick Pick or Lucky Strike? – The Hill’s winning Powerball ticket was the middle line printed in a series of five quick pick tickets. While Cindy Hill insists that she opted to have her numbers randomly selected by the computer, the winning US Powerball numbers line up perfectly with the stars of Mark’s favourite sports team, the Kansas City Royals. The US Powerball Lottery results coincide with the jersey numbers of baseball players George Brett (5), Willie Wilson (6), Bo Jackson (16), Mark Gubizca (23), Dennis Leonard (22), and Dan Quisenberry (29).
5) Found out on Facebook! – Mark Hill told his sons to keep their great fortune a secret. Then, with no warning, the father of four suddenly publicized their family’s lottery win on Facebook! Surely, after posting “We are truly blessed…we were the lucky winners of the Powerball!” Mark’s friend list will jump from 257 into the millions!
Read more US Powerball lottery facts and anecdotes here and make sure to check theLotter’s Facebook page for updates!
This Thanksgiving, the US Powerball Lotto is giving us 325 million things for us to be thankful for. The multi-state American lottery giant rang in Thanksgiving on Wednesday night with a 14th consecutive rollover, adding $75 million to the estimated jackpot, bringing the total to $350 million.
The US Powerball Lottery is celebrating Thanksgiving in a big way this year. The current jackpot is creeping closer and closer to the lottery’s record top prize, a $365 million jackpot, which was shared by eight winners in February, 2008. Since the beginning of 2012, the Powerball jackpot has eclipsed $300 million three times, reaching $320 million in August and $325 million in February before being snatched up by lucky winners. Learn more about the US Powerball’s historic jackpots here.
This festive Powerball jackpot has the potential to gain additional millions before Saturday night’s draw if the holiday spirit drives ticket sales up! And with the infamous Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, scheduled to occur before this Saturday’s US Powerball draw, the chances are good that stronger than expected ticket sales will drive up the jackpot! More than one in three American adults head to the malls on the day after Thanksgiving and with the US Powerball jackpot at $325 million, lotto tickets are sure to be a hot item.
Lottery players around the world: imagine celebrating next year’s Thanksgiving $325 million richer. With nearly unlimited funds, the plumpest turkey with all of the dressings will be placed proudly in the center of the table. There will be no need to choose between cooking a sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole or corn casserole – make them all! And it goes without saying that the pecan pie will be sweeter than ever.
Every year, Thanksgiving marks a time to reflect and express gratitude. Enter the US Powerball Lotto draw now for the chance to reflect on an unbelievable $325 million fortune this time next year!
theLotter has provided lottery fans around the globe with access to 40+ worldwide lotto draws throughout the past decade! To celebrate the milestone of running a secure and streamlined lottery service for 10 years, theLotter is offering 10 exciting sales over the course of the next 10 days!
2012 is a landmark year in the lottery world: the Mega Millions set new world record with a $656 million jackpot, the EuroMillions hit its €190 million jackpot cap, and theLotter reached its 10th year of providing customers with lottery tickets and prizes from around the world! theLotter launched an upgraded version in honour of our 10th year, which allows customers easy access to their favourite site features and a more streamlined sign in and deposit process!
Now, theLotter is keeping the party going strong by posting a new sale each day for 10 days on the site. Check www.theLotter.com or theLotter blog for the latest 24-hour sale. With the 10 days of sales celebration at theLotter, there has never been a better time to start playing it global!
Sale #1 – 25% off all multi-draws for US Powerball Lottery
The US Powerball Lottery jackpot has reached $325 million and it is on course to set a new Powerball record in the next few draws! After 14 consecutive rollovers, this unstoppable jackpot simply continues to grow and it has now passed the $300 million mark! Purchase a multi-draw package to automatically enter into the next 5, 10, 25, or 52 US Powerball draws and receive 25% off your purchase!
*Offer valid until November 24th, 2012, 23:59 GMT
Sale #2 – Buy One SuperEnalotto Ticket and Receive a Second FREE
Italy’s SuperEnalotto has created jackpots as high as €177,800,000 in October, 2010. The SuperEnalotto jackpot is on the rise once again, offering a €24.4 million top prize! For a limited time, purchase one ticket for SuperEnalotto’s Saturday night draw and receive a full refund in bonus money within 24 hours to be used to buy a second SuperEnalotto ticket! *Offer valid until November 24th, 2012 14:00 GMT
Sale #3 – 30% Cashback on theSmart!
theSmart list ranks the top ten current lotteries that offer customers the best cost-benefit ratio! theSmart formula takes into account jackpot size, winning odds, secondary prize categories and local taxes to calculate the “smartest” lotteries at each moment. For the next 24 hours, purchase a ticket for theLotter’s smartest lotteries and receive 30% cashback in bonus money!
*Offer valid until November 25th, 14:00 GMT
Sale #4 – 50% off all Prize Multiplier features!
theLotter is now offering 50% off prize multiplier features, including Powerball Power Play, Mega Millions Megaplier and Oregon Megabucks Kicker. These add-ons multiply all non-jackpot sizes by up to four times their original value. In fact, the Powerball Power Play pushes the $1 million second prize up to an astounding $2 million!
*Offer valid until November 28th, 23:59 GMT
Sale #5 – Earn $30 in Bonus Money through the Tell A Friend Program
theLotter always rewards players who bring friends to the site! For the next 24 hours, customers can earn $30 from theLotter for referring new friends! Additionally, when a friend follows the specific link sent to them in the Tell A Friend email, they will also receive a gift, $15! There has never been a better time to introduce your friends to theLotter.com!
*Offer valid until November 29th, 14:00 GMT
Sale #6 – 10% Discount on Tickets for Mega Da Virada
Ticket sales have commenced for the yearly Brazilian Mega Sena Da Virada super draw at theLotter and this year’s jackpot is set at R$ 180 million ($86 million). Enter your lucky numbers now and save 10% on one-time entries for Brazil’s biggest lottery jackpot.
*Offer valid until December 1st, 23:59 GMT
Sale #7 – 20% Off One-Time Entries for All Autralian Lotteries
Australian lotteries are known for offering some of the best lottery odds worldwide and some of the largest lottery prizes! The Australian Saturday Lotto is nearly always in the #1 spot of theSmart and Australian Oz Lotto has created jackpots as high as AU$ 112 million! For a limited time, purchase one-time entries fro Australia Powerball, Australia Saturday Lotto, Australia Wednesday Lotto or Oz Lotto, and receive a 20% discount on your tickets!
*Offer valid until December 4th, 14:00 GMT
Sale #8 – Special Ticket Prices on the Loteria de Navidad
Loteria de Navidad tickets are now available at theLotter. From now until December 21st, purchase individual shares or full tickets for annual Spanish Christmas Lottery, which offers the biggest prize pool and the best winning odds on earth! If you purchase your tickets within the next three days, you will benefit from a special early bird reduced price!
*Offer valid until December 7th
Sale #9–12% Off 12 Top Lotteries
Today’s date is 12.12.12, and theLotter is offering lottery fans a 12% discount on all one-time entries for the following lotteries:
Austria Lotto, California Super Lotto, EuroMillions UK, Florida Lotto, France Loto, Indiana Hoosier Lotto, Israel New Lotto, New York Sweet Million Lotto, Russia Goslotto 6/45, Spain’s El Gordo, Sweden’s Viking Lotto and the UK’s Thunderball.
With a mix of state and national lotteries, some featuring on theBig or theSmart, take advantage of 12% off all one-time entries. Read more about this special sale in the news.
Check out theLotter to experience 40+ international lotteries at a whole new level.
The smell of new is in the air at theLotter.com! theLotter has released an upgraded and redesigned site with countless exciting new features offering easy access to our signature lottery tools via the revamped homepage and mega menu, streamlined sign in and deposit options, and simplified navigation from your private account.
Few smells create as much excitement and anticipation when they waft towards the nose as the smell of new products. Get ready to breathe in the aroma of a new theLotter.com. It will be as satisfying as any other new brand new smell, worthy of its own signature perfume!
While the new stuff smell has proved its power, theLotter found another way to celebrate the launch of our new site. Coming soon, look for a 10-day celebration featuring exciting promotional offers in honour of our tenth anniversary. Enjoy 10 full days of unprecedented sales with a new way to save published on theLotter’s homepagedaily! Stay tuned for additional updates on our Facebook and Twitter channels for all the latest offers!
As some of the world’s high profile mega-jackpots return to their starting values after long rollover runs, the time has come to focus on theLotter’s lesser-known lottery gems. Too often, lottery players simply enter their lucky numbers into the draw with the biggest jackpot, usually those multi-state or pan-European lotteries with names that end with “millions”. However, sometimes thinking outside of the box is the key when it comes to big wins!
Embrace this time as an opportunity to explore the 40+ lotteries offered at theLotter! After all, variety is the spice of life. theSmart list is an excellent guide to some of theLotter’s niche draws that offer customers the best cost-benefit ratios – combining jackpot size, ticket price, taxes, and winning odds. Currently, there are lotteries spanning five continents highlighted on theSmart, including Turkey Super Lotto 6/54, Russia Gosloto 6/45, South Africa Lotto, Spain BonoLoto and Indiana Hoosier Lotto each offering its own lottery twist or pop of personality.
Meet Russia GosLoto 6/45, one of the newest lottery additions to the site. The GosLoto family, consisting of GosLoto 6/45 and GosLoto 7/49, made its first appearance at theLotter in October, 2012. The Russian lottery favourite is celebrating one month at theLotter by taking up the #3 spot on theSmart, offering 1 in 7 odds of winning a prize, three weekly draws and a RUB 65 million current jackpot ($2.1 million).
The Oregon Megabucks lottery is one of two US state lotteries currently ranked on theSmart. What makes this unique, besides the fact that it offers some of the most attractive jackpots and best winning odds of US state lotteries? The Oregon Megabucks’ secret weapon is its Kicker prize multiplier. Players who add this prize multiplying option are privy to secondary prizes multiplied four times their original amount!
Of course, Australian lotteries are virtually mainstays on theSmart list, known for their unbelievable winning odds and frequent super draws, which drive jackpots up high enough to rank in the top spots of theBig list. Australia Saturday Lotto rarely goes two draws without distributing its jackpot, which starts at a generous AU$ 4 million. Currently, theSmart is bookended with Australian lotteries, with 8 international draws sandwiched between the Australia Saturday Lotto in the #1 spot and Wednesday Lotto ranked as #10.
With 40+ lotteries offered on the site, there are lottery results drawings held on a daily basis, meaning that the theSmart list is a constantly changing and morphing chart. Check theSmart often to see which lotteries offer the best current cost-benefit ratios, or purchase a subscription to automatically enter the smartest lotteries twice a week and receive every tenth ticket free!
