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EuroMillions is a transnational lottery, launched on 7 February 2004 by France's Française des Jeux, Spain's Loterías y Apuestas del Estado and the United Kingdom's Camelot. The first draw was held on Friday 13 February 2004 in Paris. Initially, only the UK, France and Spain participated, with the Austrian, Belgian, Irish, Luxembourgish, Portuguese and Swiss lotteries joining for the 8 October 2004 drawing.
Contents
- Play
- Eligibility
- Prize structure
- EuroMillions Trust
- Super Draws and Event draws
- Distribution of revenue
- Email scams making use of EuroMillions brand name
- EuroMillions Plus Ireland only
- UK Millionaire Maker
- UK Millionaire Maker Special Events
- References
Draws are held every Tuesday and Friday night at 20:45 CET in Paris. A standard EuroMillions ticket costs €2.50, £2.50 or CHF3.50 per line played, depending on the local currency. (An option, called Plus, currently available only in Ireland and Portugal, adds €1.00 per line; and a new (as of February 2014) non-optional addition called "My Million" in France adds €0.50 per line) The cost of playing in the UK increased from £1.50 to £2.00 per line on 7 November 2009, due to the combination of: the EUR/GBP exchange rate, and an automatic entry in its Millionaire Raffle. From 24 September 2016 the cost per line increased from £2.00 to £2.50 in the UK.
From September 24th 2016 the amount of lucky stars changed from a pool of 11 to a pool of 12 numbers. Decreasing the jackpot winning odds from 1:117million to 1:140million.
From September 24th 2016 the cost of entry in Ireland and Spain rose to €2.50 per line.
All prizes, including the jackpot, are tax-free (except in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal since 2013) and are paid as a lump sum.
Play
Draws take place at 20:45 every Tuesday and Friday in Paris. The results are published shortly after the draw on associated and independent websites around 23:00 hours.
To participate in the EuroMillions Lotto, you can purchase tickets from many outlets, namely at licensed stores and online websites.
The gameplay changed on Tuesday 10 May 2011 with a second weekly draw and the number of "lucky stars" in the Pacquerette machine increasing from 9 to 11. A prize for matching two main numbers and no lucky stars was also introduced on the same date.
On Saturday 24 September 2016 the number of "lucky stars" increased again, from 11 to 12.
Eligibility
Prize structure
As of 24 September 2016 the structure of the draw was changed, with the Lucky Star being drawn from a pool of 12 numbers instead of the old 11. The prize structure as of Tuesday 27 September 2016 is as follows:
The booster fund is available to contribute to the jackpot, for example to boost the initial jackpot in a sequence of growing jackpots. The amount utilized each week is determined in advance by the participating lotteries.
Effective 7 November 2009 new rules were put in place regarding rollovers.
A new rule change of 12 January 2012 locks the Jackpot cap at €190,000,000 permanently and if the jackpot is not won after two draws, the prize money will be distributed amongst the winners at the next level. A new rule change of 24 September 2016: if the jackpot is not won after five draws, the prize money will be distributed amongst the winners at the next level.
EuroMillions Trust
The participating national lotteries in the EuroMillions game have each established a EuroMillions Trust account. This is used for the settlement of all amounts due and for holding amounts in respect of future prizes. This trust arrangement protects the participating lotteries between them from a default from one of the national companies and ultimately the players' interests.
Super Draws and Event draws
Super Draws and Event draws are special drawings when the Jackpot is set to a guaranteed amount - often €100,000,000. The difference being that a Super Draw jackpot will roll over to the next drawing if not won but an Event Draw jackpot will be distributed amongst the winners in the next lower tier (i.e. match 5 + 1). So far there has not been an event draw, until now, jackpots in a Super Draw have rolled over to the next drawing if not won
The first Super draw of 2011 took place on Tuesday 10 May to mark the introduction of the second weekly Euromillions draw and changes to the game format (11 lucky stars instead of 9 and a new "match 2 main numbers and no lucky stars" prize tier).
The first Super draw of 2016 took place on Friday 30 September to introduce the change to the game format (12 lucky stars instead of 11 and increased price).
Super draws have been held to date on
(A €100,000,000 Super draw was planned for 6 June 2014 but was cancelled when the jackpot rolled over to €105,000,000).
(This is a change to the game rules as of 4 April 2011 when the Event Draw was added.)
Distribution of revenue
In the UK, the total EuroMillions revenue is broken down as follows:
Email scams making use of EuroMillions brand name
When Chris and Colin Weir, one couple who won the EuroMillions, pledged to donate their prize money to good causes, cyber criminals started using the couple's name in their email scams to fool the general public and ultimately cheat them of money.
EuroMillions Plus (Ireland only)
In June 2007, with the success of the main EuroMillions game, the Irish National Lottery launched EuroMillions Plus. For an extra €1 per line, players could enter the additional draw with the top prize each week of €500,000. Sales of the main EuroMillions in Ireland for 2006 were over €145 million; this success led to the introduction of 'Plus'.
UK Millionaire Maker
Since November 2009 at least one UK player every week has won a guaranteed million Pounds Sterling. With the introduction of the Tuesday EuroMillions Draw on Tuesday 10 May 2011 there were 2 Millionaire Raffle winners each week. The latest changes to Euromillions in September 2016 now mean that two guaranteed Millionaire Raffle winners are made per draw, or 4 per week across the two draws.
According to the Euromillions website, the chances of winning the UK Millionaire Maker game on a Tuesday can be estimated as 1 in 1,900,000 but can shrink to 1 in 2,250,000 in the events of rollovers. On a Friday, it can be calculated as 1 in 2,950,000 but again the odds can fall to 1 in 3,400,000 in the events of a 4 times rollover. Winning in this game depends entirely on the number of the playslips sold so the odds fluctuate. The odds may also fluctuate during a super draw or a special event in the UK Millionaire Raffle.
Prices per line in the UK increased by 50 pence to £2.00. The 50 pence was added due to weak exchange rates between the pound and euro and to cover the expense of the new Millionaire Maker. On 24th September 2016 the price per line in the UK was increased by an additional 50 pence to £2.50.