How did the jackpot get so big?
The jackpot for Friday’s draw stands at an estimated £154 million (€174 million), having been climbing for almost two months since it was last won by an Irish family syndicate on Friday 29th December. The 15th successive rollover came on Tuesday night, when nobody matched the winning numbers of 6, 14, 19, 25 and 29, with Lucky Stars 5 and 11.
If a single player bags the jackpot on Friday, they will become the fifth largest winner in EuroMillions history, and the biggest winner since a Spanish participant scooped €190 million with a ticket bought in Gran Canaria last October.
EuroMillions has a jackpot cap of €190 million and one more rollover could take the top prize up to its maximum level. Once it hits €190 million, the jackpot can then stay locked at this level for as many as five draws, with additional funds from ticket sales instead going into the next tier in which there are winners.
What is Friday’s special event?
Friday’s special event is a raffle played by all nine participating countries, and goes by different names such as the European Millionaire Maker in the UK, the EuroMillionaires Raffle Draw in Ireland, Pluies de millionnaires in France and Lluvia de Millones in Spain.
Players receive a unique raffle code alongside every EuroMillions line they enter, and 25 winning codes are then selected at random on the night. Each winner will receive either £1 million or €1 million.
The odds of winning a raffle prize depend on how many players take part throughout Europe, but every single code has the same chance of winning regardless of where the ticket was bought. In the last Europe-wide raffle, for example, on 28th October 2016, there were three winners from Luxembourg despite the country’s relatively low level of participation.
How can I take part?
You can only win one of Friday’s fantastic prizes if you take part, of course, and tickets can be bought from authorised retailers in any of the participating countries. You can also choose numbers online - eliminating the risk of a ticket being stolen and ensuring that you will be notified of any prize win. Good luck!