Lotteries are one of the most common forms of gambling around the world. The appeal is that nearly anyone can play and buy the cheap tickets, for a chance to win life-changing sums of money. Nowadays, there are so many lotteries available to play online, and players don’t have to be restricted to playing their own country’s national lottery. Here is a run-down of some of the main lotteries across the world.
“euromillion ballon” (CC BY 2.0) by tarchamps
EuroMillions
The EuroMillions is the biggest and most famous lottery in Europe, and was founded in 2004. It is so popular now that over 214 million people are playing it, and players can play EuroMillions online twice a week to try and get their hands on that massive jackpot. Eleven countries in Europe participate in the EuroMillions, and these countries also have their own national lotteries to give their residents an even greater chance of becoming instantly rich.
“Lottery Winners Barbara and Michael Ayre” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Montage Communications
Lotto UK
The UK national lottery has been a weekly occurrence since 1993. Initially it was held every Saturday, but now there are two main draws each week, along with other smaller games and scratch cards. The highest ever jackpot was £66 million, and the average odds of winning are around 45 million-1. With tickets available for as little as £1, though, the lucky few who have won the jackpot have had their lives changed drastically. To play, players must select six numbers between 1 and 49. To win the jackpot, all six numbers need to be drawn.
“Powerball now worth more than $1 BILLION” (CC BY 2.0) by apardavila
Powerball
USA Powerball is the biggest lottery available to play in the United States, and ridiculous sums of money have been won on this game. In January of 2016 Powerball recorded the biggest ever pay-out of any lottery in the world, which was $1.586 billion. The game costs a mere $2 to play, and players select 5 white balls from numbers 1-69, along with one Powerball from red numbers 1-26. To win, players must have the Powerball along with at least three white balls. The good news is, you don’t have to live in America to get your hands on one of the absolutely enormous jackpots. Players can buy their tickets and choose their numbers online now to take part in this huge game.
“Irish National Lottery Scratchcard” (CC BY 2.0) by Sean MacEntee
Irish Lotto
The Irish Lottery in the Republic of Ireland has been running since 1988, and was originally founded as a method of raising funds for good causes such as health and welfare, and sport and recreation. Since its inception, the Irish Lottery has generated over €12 billion in sales and paid out over half of that in prizes. A large portion of the ticket sales that totals over €4 billion has gone to the good causes that it supports. The highest jackpot ever recorded in this lottery was €18.9million. To play this game, players must select six numbers between 1 and 47, along with a bonus ball. The chances of winning this game are four times greater than the chances of winning the UK national lottery.
Along with these, there are many other lottery games across the world, and players can now take part in any of them by playing online.
