The most prosperous lotteries worldwide

We all dream about it, but very few of us actually get to experience the shock, joy and jubilation of winning the lottery.

I mean, the chances are heavily stacked against you and you have more chance of giving birth to an octopus (without fertility treatment) than scoring big on the lotto.

But as the old saying goes, ‘you’ve got to be in it, to win it’ and there’s no truer statement when it comes to the lottery. Globally, there’s some utterly staggering amounts of money that can be won and no matter how hard it is to win, players will always be engrossed as they look to score the ultimate prize.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most prosperous lotteries across the world, but before we do, take a peek at the latest Betfair casino offerings where of course, there’s a much greater chance of winning.

La Primitiva – Spain

In Spain, La Primitiva is the national lottery that extends back to 1763. Of course, today’s prizes and offerings are far superior to the early origins as it was originally invented to raise money for the Spanish royals and the treasury. La Primitiva’s record jackpot was €100 million and was picked up by one ticket holder in Barcelona, but the guaranteed jackpot will always sit at €3 million.

SuperEnalotto – Italy

The Italians are no strangers when it comes to national lotteries, with some brilliant prizes and huge jackpots to take advantage of. The SuperEnalotto has been in operation since 1997, and the biggest prize to date was a paltry €177.7 million split between a syndicate of 70 people in 2010. To win in Italy, you must match six numbers from a total of 90 from the respective balls being drawn.

EuroMillions – EU

The EuroMillions is one of the most famous lotteries across the world, with some amazing prizes being won since it was launched in 2004. More often than not, the EuroMillions rolls over which enables such hefty winnings, but the biggest win was claimed in 2014. A Portuguese ticket claimed some €190 million whereas two UK tickets have collected €148.6 million and €161 million respectively.

Mega Millions – US

If you thought the EuroMillions gave away big prizes then think again. Across the pond, the United States of America boast the largest lottery prizes across the globe. The Mega Millions, with average chances of winning thought to be 1 in 258,890,850, regularly scoop life changing sums in excess of $100 million. In fact, the largest win to date was $656 million and nowadays the Mega Millions is open to international players.

Powerball – US

Here we are, the most prosperous lottery currently in operation and it’s even bigger than the Mega Millions. The Powerball generates the biggest prizes that are available, and the largest to be won was a staggering $1.5 billion! The Powerball is available to play in 44 states and also welcomes international players, just like the Mega Millions. Something else that makes the Powerball so attractive is the minimum prize of $20 million. The only drawback, you have a 1 in 292 million chance of winning. Sigh.