EuroMillions
The Euromillions Lottery was launched in 2004 as the first multi-nation lottery draw. The plan to sell the lottery tickets for a multi-nation lottery came about with the launch of the Euro currency in the mid 1990’s but it took almost ten years to bring the idea to fruition. Upon its launch in 2004, lottery tickets for the draw could be bought in the UK, France and Spain but within a few months, Luxembourg, Portugal, Ireland, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria joined the Euromillions Lottery.
Moving away from the traditional 6 from 49 matrix, the Euromillions Lottery plays completely different. On each the lottery ticket is the option to choose five main balls, from 1 to 50 inclusive and two lucky stars from 1 to 11 inclusive. To win the Euromillions jackpot, your lottery ticket must match all five winning numbers and the two lucky stars.
Euromillions jackpots start at €15 million and climb, week on week until won. The Euromillons lottery does have a 'Jackpot Pool Cap' which means that when and if the jackpot reaches €185 million in the first intance then it cannot grow anymore. What happens at this points is that the jackpot remains static but any addition to the prize pool moves down to the next lowest tier each week until the big jackpot is won. Subsequent multiple rollovers will see the Jackpot Pool Cap increase by €5 million each time that the cap is reached. For example the first cap was reached in July 2011 meaning that the cap has increased to €190 million, should this then be reached it will remain until it is won and the following cap will be €195 million and so on. Some countries have additional draws alongside the Euromillions Lottery draw such as the Millionaire Raffle in the UK and a special power play option in both Ireland and Portugal.
Overall odds of the lottery ticket you have purchased winning the Euromillions jackpot stand at one in 116,631,800, a figure increased by the two sets of numbered balls used. However, overall odds of winning a prize are one in 13, created by the thirteen tiers of lottery prizes up for grabs each week, plus of course special draws held, depending on which country you are buying your Euromillions Lottery tickets in.
The long odds of winning the Euromillions Lottery means that rollovers are common and the likelihood of your lottery ticket being worth anything up to €100 million is not unheard of.
The Euromillions Lottery celebrates events throughout the year by offering lottery tickets for Superdraws, these jackpots can often be as high as €100 million and are the event of either many rollovers or a special Euromillions ‘Superdraw’. By old Euromillions Lottery rules, Superdraws had to be won, if no jackpot winner was found then the €100 million would roll down to the lower division winners. A change in the rules in 2009 means that now, if a €100 million Superdraw jackpot isn’t won then it rolls over to the following week.
The Euromillions Lottery has seen many notable winners since its launch in 2004 and for many players, their lottery ticket has been a ticket straight to the Times Rich List, above celebrities and the aristocracy. In July 2011 Chris and Colin Weir of Largs in Scotland netted a record breaking win of £161,653,000 / €185,000,00 following a fourteen times rollover. The Jackpot Cap came in to play on the 13th rollover draw but there were no winners so the jackpot remained the same for the 14th rollover draw. On 3rd February 2006 three players shared a €183 million Euromillions Lottery jackpot on an eleven times rollover.