EuroMillions: Everything you need to know to participate and win
EuroMillions is an international lottery, which is played in nine different European countries; the United Kingdom, Portugal, Spain, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Ireland, France, and Belgium. You can enjoy the draws two times a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays. Being an international lottery, it has much higher participation than ordinary national lotteries. Because of this, also the jackpots are much higher, even more than 100 million euros. Let’s have a closer look at what it’s all about and how you can take part in this very popular lottery.
History
EuroMillions first started with only three countries, which were Spain, France and the United Kingdom. The first draw took place in Paris on the 13th of February in 2004. A French player won a sum of 15 million euros. Already in October the same year, six more countries joined the lottery, and they are all still part of it today. In 2005 a player from Ireland won the largest lottery prize ever of that time, and it was 115,4 million euros. This made EuroMillions even more popular, and the number of tickets sold became higher.
The rules keep changing
The lottery has gone through several rule changes in its existence. More exciting features have been added and also some specific extra features for other countries. Some major changes were done in 2016 when the ticket price went up slightly, but at the same time, the lottery game got more prizes, including some special draws. In February 2020, there were more changes, and those are the latest ones as well. They altered the prize fund in a way that a higher percentage goes towards the jackpot in every draw. Also, they increased the jackpot cap from 190 million euros to 200 million euros.
Play EuroMillions online
Playing EuroMillions is very simple. The first step is to select five primary numbers between 1 to 50 and two Lucky Stars between 1 to 12. You can either choose these yourself, or you can let the computer randomly choose the numbers for you. Lucky Dip is the name of this feature in EuroMillions. Then you choose how many lines you want to play. That enables you to submit several entries at the same time for the same draw. The maximum lines, when played online, is seven and five lines when played at a lottery retailer.
The final steps
Next, you need to choose which draw you wish to enter. It can either be the Tuesday draw, Friday draw or both. Here you will also decide how many weeks do you want to play in advance. This can be anything from two to four weeks. You can have eight draws advance maximum if you play both Tuesday and Friday draws for consecutive four weeks. After choosing these, you will pay for the draws. It costs 2,50 euros and pounds or 3,50 Swiss francs. When playing online, your ticket will stay in the system, and all winnings will be paid directly to you.
How to select numbers?
There are no complicated number selections on EuroMillions. You will need first to choose the five main numbers. You can choose them between numbers 1 and 50. After that, you will choose two additional numbers between 1 and 12 which are called the Lucky Star numbers. Not complicated at all. But which numbers to choose? This is the tricky part. The lottery is a game of luck as any online gambling games. You can’t affect the winning numbers anyhow; it will be what it will be.
Are there any methods for choosing the numbers?
Many people use different methods which they believe will bring luck for them. It is very common to use numbers which have personal meaning for the players, such as birthdates, telephone numbers, old house numbers. Even something that reminds them of their loved ones and the list can go on and on. Some rely on certain patterns, even very mathematically calculated ones. Then there are the ones who have been playing with the same numbers for years. That can also work and eventually bring some smaller prizes or even the jackpot. Picking up random numbers is not a bad idea too. There are probably as many number combinations as there are people also.
The top jackpot of EuroMillions
The biggest jackpot of 190 million euros has been won four times in history. The winners have been two times from the UK, once from Spain and once from Portugal. There are also other notable jackpots which all have reached the prize of more than 160 million euros. The winners of them live in Ireland, France, Belgium, Portugal, and Switzerland. Most of the winners wish to remain anonymous.
Most selling EuroMillions lottery tickets
There has been billions and billions of tickets sold ever since EuroMillions started back in 2004. All the participating countries have been lucky and won even smaller jackpots. However, the records show that Spain and France have had the most jackpot winners and France has won the most money on EuroMillions. This can also be explained by the population, which is much higher than in some smaller countries like Austria, for example.
How to check results
You can view the results in each countries’ own national TV channel at the time of the draw every Tuesday and Friday. You can watch it live from there if you are in the country. Otherwise, all the results appear online after the draw has taken place. For all the big winning prizes, the winners will get a personal notification. For smaller prizes, it is advisable to check the winning numbers and then claim your prize. All this depends on the chosen method of collecting winnings.
When will I get my winnings?
It is also good to know that there is a certain validation time for each ticket. That means the claim period for prizes depends on that. This validation time depends on each country, the longest being in Austria for three years and the shortest being in the UK for 180 days. That is why it is always important to check the results in time and make sure you get your prizes.
Play international EuroMillions online
The most crucial thing to remember while playing online is that you play through a trusted website. It doesn’t matter where you are as you can play it worldwide, and it is not necessary to be in one of the countries listed. The online lottery works in the same way as if you would buy the tickets from an ordinary retailer shop. You first need to choose your numbers, the number of lines and then the draws which you want to participate. You will pay the tickets online using the online payment methods available. Although the price of each ticket is 2,50 euros in EuroMillions countries, you might have to pay more when playing through an international online lottery dealer. The retailers apply these additional charges for players who play from outside the participating countries.
Is it safe to play EuroMillions online?
Yes, it is safe to play EuroMillions online as long as you do it through a trusted website. However, it’s possible to find different scams, so you must be careful while playing online. There is a special section on EuroMillions official website, which gives you very detailed information about how to detect a possible scam. That is why you should always double-check the website where you want to play from before entering into the lottery. Some of the trusted websites include TheLotter.com, PlayHugeLottos.com and LottoAgents.com. We have listed below some trusted websites which you can use to play EuroMillions online.
No magic could make you win on EuroMillions. To participate: go online, select your numbers and how many lines you wish to play, choose your draws, pay for your entries. After that, keep your fingers crossed as you are waiting for the draw.
There have been several winners throughout the times of EuroMillions. The 190 million jackpots have been won four times. Two times it went to the UK, once to Spain and once to Portugal. Most of the times, the high jackpot winners wish to stay anonymous.
It is very simple and fast to take part in the lottery online. You just need to make sure that you will do it through a trusted website. It is not unusual to find scams online which pretend to act like an official EuroMillions retailer. Always make sure to use only reliable, trusted retailers.
You can play EuroMillions online from anywhere in the world through a trusted lottery website. You don’t have to be or live in a EuroMillions country to participate.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What time is the EuroMillions draws?
EuroMillions draws take place on Tuesday and Friday at approximately 8 pm. The results are then announced after that, being ready at about 8.15 pm.
- What is the minimum jackpot?
In 2016 the minimum jackpot increased from 15 million to 17 million euros and stands there up to today.
- How much EuroMillions tickets cost country-wise?
The ticket in all the countries which use euros cost 2,50 euros. In the UK, the prize is 2,50 pounds. In Switzerland, the price is 3,50 Swiss francs. When buying the tickets online with another currency, the price will vary according to the exchange rate.
- How to claim a prize?
This depends whether you bought the tickets online or in-store and also on the amount won. In most of the cases, you will receive the amount automatically to your account, but this may vary.
- Difference between UK EuroMillions and European EuroMillions?
The rules of EuroMillions are the same in all the countries. The only addition to it in the UK is the UK Millionaire Maker. It is a free additional game added in the EuroMillions tickets sold in the UK. It is a unique code in each ticket which you can enter in a raffle draw, and the ticket holder will have a chance to win a 1-million-pound prize.
Play online EuroMillions with trusted websites
These are some of the trusted websites in which you can play EuroMillions online:
TheLotter.com
TheLotter is one of the most reputable online lottery ticket websites. You are able to play more than 50 lotteries, including EuroMillions. It has been operating since 2002 from London, UK. TheLotter offers several different deposit methods and doesn’t claim any fees from your winnings. All the tickets are scanned and sent to you by email so that you will have a copy of each one of them.
Win the world’s biggest jackpotPlayHugeLottos.com
PlayHugeLottos’ original idea was to help the people around the world to buy tickets for the National UK lottery. It started in 1998 and ever since has since grown to offer more lotteries from around the world. It is a very trustworthy company, and it offers tickets to 17 lotteries at this time, including EuroMillions. They do charge a commission on lottery winnings, but on the other hand, it also offers deposit bonuses which can allow you to play with more money in the beginning. There are several deposit methods, and the winnings can be transferred straight to your bank account. It has some restricted countries, so check first that you are allowed to play through them.
LottoAgents.com
LottoAgents offers very affordable ticket prices for different lotteries around the world. It has several different payment methods which make it easy to use from anywhere in the world. Although it is a relatively new website that started in 2012, it has gained a good reputation among the online lottery websites. It also offers nice discounts on tickets. It is a completely safe and legit company to use. They also have a very good mobile app.
Lottoland.com
Lottoland is a safe and trustworthy website for playing lottery games online. It also has a great variety of other games, so you can end up spending more time on this exciting website. It is 100% safe, and two different gambling commissions regulate it. The only negative side is that it offers very few payment methods, but you will receive the winnings almost instantly to your account. It also offers many extra features and bonuses which can make the lottery game even more exciting.
