EuroMillions


EuroMillions is a transnational lottery that requires seven correct numbers to win the jackpot, which consists of 5 main numbers and 2 Lucky Star Numbers. It was launched on 7 February 2004 by France's Française des Jeux, Spain's Loterías y Apuestas del Estado and the United Kingdom's Camelot group. The first draw was held on 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 draw.
Draws are held every Tuesday and Friday night at approximately 21:05 CET in Paris. A standard EuroMillions ticket costs €2.50, £2.50 or CHF 3.50 per line played. The draw machines are manufactured by French manufacturer Ryo Catteau, with the main number machine using their Stresa model, whilst the Lucky Star Number machine uses their Pâquerette model.
Ireland has an exclusive option called Plus, which adds €1.00 per line. As of February 2014, a non-optional addition called "My Million" in France adds €0.50 per line, while in Portugal it is called "M1lhão" and represents €0.30 of the whole €2.50 bet.
The cost of playing in the UK increased from £1.50 to £2.00 per line on 7 November 2009, due to the EUR/GBP exchange rate and automatic entry into its [|Millionaire Raffle]. On 24 September 2016, the cost per line increased from £2.00 to £2.50 in the UK. On the same day, in Ireland and Spain it rose to €2.50 per line.
From 24 September 2016, the number 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.
All prizes, including the jackpot, are tax-free and are paid as a lump sum.

Play

  • The player selects five main numbers which can be any number from 1 to 50.
  • The player selects two different lucky star numbers from a pool of 12 numbers.
Draws take place at approximately 21:05 CET every Tuesday and Friday in Paris. The results are published shortly after the draw on associated and independent websites around 21:50 CET.
To participate in the EuroMillions Lotto, tickets can be purchased 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 Pâquerette 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

The game is offered by 10 lottery operators in 9 countries:
  • : Österreichische Lotterien GmbH
  • : National Lottery of Belgium
  • : La Française des Jeux
  • : Premier Lotteries Ireland DAC
  • : Loterie Nationale
  • : Jogos Santa Casa
  • : Loterías y Apuestas del Estado
  • :
  • * Société de la Loterie de la Suisse Romande
  • * Swisslos Interkantonale Landeslotterie
  • : Allwyn UK
Through the authorities of the above operators, the game is also available to players in Andorra, Liechtenstein, and Monaco, as well as the Isle of Man and French overseas regions and collectivities.
Entrants must be at least 18 years old. There is no restriction on the nationality of buyers; non-residents are eligible to participate as long as they meet the age requirement.

Prize structure

The prize structure as of Tuesday, 4 February 2020 is as follows:
The Prize Guarantee 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.
  • per entry
  • prize fund = 50% of sales main draw
  • sales main draw = €2.20 in pounds sterling per entry times number of entries
  • draw 1 to 5: 50% + 10% & draw 6 : 42% + 18%
  • expected winnings are based on the currency exchange rate as at 7 December 2019, 1 euro = 0.8419 pound, rounded to 1 pound
  • The odds of winning any prize at all are 1 in 13
  • The odds of getting none of the 50 main balls but getting both lucky stars is approximately 1 in 115. This means that it is less likely than getting 2 main balls and one lucky star. However, there is no prize for only getting 2 lucky stars.
  • The figures for the estimated prize are just a guide, and the actual amount varies according to the total in the prize fund and the number of winners for each prize.
  • If the Jackpot is not won, it rolls over to the next draw.
Effective 7 November 2009 new rules were put in place regarding rollovers:
  • The new rules introduced a Jackpot Pool Cap. Once the jackpot reached €185,000,000, the Jackpot will remain at €185,000,000 and any additional prize money rolled over would be added to the jackpot pool for the next lower prize level containing at least one winner.
  • After the capped jackpot is reached, either won or rolled down, the next capped jackpot cap would increase by £5million.
A new rule change of 12 January 2012 locked the Jackpot cap at €190,000,000 permanently and if the jackpot was not won after two draws, the prize money would be distributed among the winners at the next level. A new rule change of 24 September 2016 stated that if the jackpot is not won five draws after it reaches €190,000,000, the prize money will be distributed among the winners at the next level. The minimum jackpot prize increased from 15m euros to 17m euros.
In February 2020, the rules regarding the EuroMillions jackpot changed again. The new cap was set at €200,000,000, but that would no longer be fixed. If the jackpot gets to this amount, the cycle can last for five draws. If there are no winners in the fifth draw, the jackpot is paid out to the lower tier. For the next cycle, the maximum jackpot is set to €210,000,000, and is again paid out to the lower tier if there is no winner. In subsequent cycles, the maximum jackpot is raised to 220, 230, 240 and finally 250 million euros. The latest maximum jackpot, €250m, was reached on 13 June 2025.

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, initially at €100 million then at €130 million. The difference is that a Super Draw jackpot will roll over to the next drawing if not won, but an Event Draw jackpot will be distributed among the winners in the next lower tier. 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.
The first Super Draw of 2016 took place on Friday 30 September to introduce the change to the game format.
Event Draws have been held to date on
Super Draws have been held to date on
  • 6 March 2009 ;
  • 18 September 2009 ;
  • 5 February 2010 ;
  • 1 October 2010 ;
  • 10 May 2011 ;
  • 4 October 2011 ;
  • 28 September 2012 ;
  • 22 March 2013 ;
  • 7 June 2013 ;
  • 15 November 2013 ;
  • 7 March 2014 ;
  • 3 October 2014 ;
  • 6 March 2015 ;
  • 5 June 2015 ;
  • 6 November 2015 ;
  • 30 September 2016 ;
  • 30 June 2017 ;
  • 15 September 2017 ;
  • 20 April 2018 ;
  • 21 September 2018 ;
  • 1 February 2019 ;
  • 7 June 2019 ;
  • 7 February 2020 ;
  • 3 July 2020 ;
  • 25 September 2020 ;
  • 20 November 2020 ;
  • 5 February 2021 ;
  • 4 June 2021 ;
  • 24 September 2021 ;
  • 4 February 2022 ;
  • 17 June 2022 ;
  • 9 September 2022 ;
  • 2 December 2022 ;
  • 3 March 2023 ;
  • 2 June 2023 ;
  • 29 September 2023 ;
  • 1 December 2023 ;
  • 26 January 2024 ;
  • 15 March 2024 ;
  • 7 June 2024 ;
  • 27 September 2024 ;
  • 7 March 2025.
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 also happened for the superdraw that was planned for Friday 29 April 2022.
This is a change to the game rules as of 4 April 2011 when the Event Draw was added.

Largest Jackpots

  • AJ: Announced Jackpot
  • RO2: Roll over in the 2nd Prize Category
  • Dy: y is the number of Draws from starting the minimum Jackpot

    Notable wins

The first huge jackpot of over €115.4million was won by Irish woman Dolores McNamara on 29 July 2005. On 3 February 2006, three winners shared the record jackpot of €183million after the first rank was eleven draws vacant. Two French people and one Portuguese received €61,191,026 each. In order to limit the jackpot from growing higher, the rules of the game in the period from 2006 to 2009 stipulated that after the twelfth draw without a winner before the jackpot amount would be rolled down and shared between the winners in the next prize tier. This happened for the first time on, after over €183million had accumulated in the jackpot. The sum was shared between the winners of the second rank. The first highest jackpot with €190million was won by the Bayford couple from England on, and they received "only" £148.6million because of the strength of the pound. The jackpot that was won by the Weir couple from Scotland on was considered to be the highest jackpot in the UK until Peter Wilson's win on the 8 October 2019.
A jackpot of nearly €175.5million was won by a family syndicate of 8 siblings who were from County Dublin in Ireland on 19 February 2019.
A jackpot of was won by a single ticket holder in the UK bearing the winning numbers7, 10, 15, 44, 49 and the lucky stars were 3 and 12.
The highest jackpot ever won in the UK, and second highest jackpot to date, was £195,707,000, on 19 July 2022. The winning numbers were 6, 23, 27, 40, 21 and the lucky stars were 2 and 12.