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 , Spain's and the United Kingdom's Camelot group (now part of Allwyn). The first draw was held on 13 February 2004 in Paris. Initially, only the UK, France and Spain participated, with the Austrian, Belgian, Irish, Luxembourgian, Portuguese and Swiss lotteries joining for the 8 October 2004 draw.
Draws are held every Tuesday and Friday night at approximately 21:05 GMT +1 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 , with the main number machine using their model, whilst the Lucky Star Number machine uses their 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 "" 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 (except in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal, since 2013) 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 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 Friday, 23 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:
: National Lottery of Belgium
: Premier Lotteries Ireland DAC
: 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:
Mainnumbers Luckystars Probability of winning (a) % of prize fund (b) Expected winnings (c)Fraction% (€) (£) 2 0 1 in 22 4.57% 16.59% €4 £3 2 1 1 in 49 2.03% 10.3% €6 £5 1 2 1 in 188 0.53% 3.27% €7 £6 3 0 1 in 314 0.32% 2.7% €9 £8 3 1 1 in 706 0.14% 1.45% €11 £9 2 2 1 in 985 0.10% 1.3% €14 £12 4 0 1 in 13,811 0.0072% 0.26% €39 £33 3 2 1 in 14,125 0.0071% 0.37% €57 £48 4 1 1 in 31,075 0.0032% 0.35% €120 £101 4 2 1 in 621,503 0.00016% 0.19% €1,299 £1,094 5 0 1 in 3,107,515 0.000032% 0.61% €20,851 £17,555 5 1 1 in 6,991,908 0.000014% 2.61% €200,738 £169,001 5 2 1 in 139,838,160 0.00000072% 50% or 42% (X) Jackpot Prize Guarantee Fund 10% or 18% (X) Overall 1 in 13 7.71% 100% €14 £12
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.
(a) per entry (b) prize fund = 50% of sales main draw (b) sales main draw = €2.20 in pounds sterling per entry (exchange rate!) times number of entries (X) draw 1 to 5: 50% + 10% & draw 6 (or higher): 42% + 18% (c) 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 (1 in 49). 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. (Estimated prizes as per reverse of UK payslip) 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 (5 main numbers + 1 Lucky Star or possibly even just five main numbers). 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 €15,000,000 to €17,000,000.
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 (i.e. match 5 + 1). 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 (11 lucky stars instead of 9 and a new "match 2 main numbers and no lucky stars" prize tier).
The first Super Draw of 2016 took place on Friday 30 September to introduce the change to the game format (12 lucky stars instead of 11 and increased price).
Event Draws have been held to date on
9 February 2007 (€100 million); 28 September 2007 (€130 million); 8 February 2008 (€130 million); 26 September 2008 (€130 million).
Super Draws have been held to date on
6 March 2009 (€100 million); 18 September 2009 (€100 million); 5 February 2010 (€100 million); 1 October 2010 (€100 million); 10 May 2011 (€100 million); 4 October 2011 (€100 million); 28 September 2012 (€100 million); 22 March 2013 (€100 million); 7 June 2013 (€100 million); 15 November 2013 (€100 million); 7 March 2014 (€100 million); 3 October 2014 (€100 million); 6 March 2015 (€100 million); 5 June 2015 (€100 million); 6 November 2015 (€100 million); 30 September 2016 (€130 million); 30 June 2017 (€100 million); 15 September 2017 (€130 million); 20 April 2018 (€130 million); 21 September 2018 (€130 million); 1 February 2019 (€120 million); 7 June 2019 (€130 million); 7 February 2020 (€130 million); 3 July 2020 (€130 million); 25 September 2020 (€130 million); 20 November 2020 (€130 million); 5 February 2021 (€130 million); 4 June 2021 (€130 million); 24 September 2021 (€130 million); 4 February 2022 (€130 million); 17 June 2022 (€130 million); 9 September 2022 (€130 million); 2 December 2022 (€130 million); 3 March 2023 (€130 million); 2 June 2023 (€130 million); 29 September 2023 (€130 million); 1 December 2023 (€200 million); 26 January 2024 (€130 million); 15 March 2024 (€130 million); 7 June 2024 (€130 million); 27 September 2024 (€130 million); 7 March 2025 (€130 million); 26 September 2025 (€130 million); 5 December 2025 (€130 million); 20 February 2026 (€130 million).
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.
Notable wins Rank Date EUR GBP CHF Country 1 2025-08-19 250,000,000 216,150,000 235,667,500 France 1 2025-06-17 250,000,000 213,650,000 233,712,750 Ireland 1 2025-03-28 250,000,000 209,088,000 239,178,000 Austria 4 2023-12-08 240,000,000 206,064,000 227,926,800 Austria 5 2022-07-19 230,000,000 195,707,000 228,674,050 UK 6 2021-10-15 220,000,000 185,548,000 236,271,420 France 7 2022-05-10 215,840,341 184,263,000 225,600,000 UK 8 2024-06-25 213,887,390 180,756,232 205,442,902 Portugal 9 2024-11-26 212,448,937 177,033,699 197,922,103 UK 10 2021-02-26 210,000,000 182,028,000 230,223,000 Switzerland 11 2026-03-10 209,527,211 181,073,416 189,916,721 UK 12 2020-12-11 200,000,000 183,120,000 215,862,600 France
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 (there were 20 winners of €9.6million each). The first highest jackpot with €190million was won by the Bayford couple from England on , and they received "only" £148.7million 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 the win on 8 October 2019, 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.