Spain’s ‘El Gordo’ lottery hands out record €2.77 billion windfall

Just two days before Christmas Eve, Spain’s iconic Christmas lottery distributed an unprecedented 2.77 billion euros ($3.25 billion) on Monday, 70 million euros more than last year, making it the largest sum in lottery history.

Founded over 200 years ago, the lottery is considered the oldest in the world and is also known as the largest raffle due to the amount of money involved.

The main prize alone, called El Gordo (“the big one”), which awards 4 million euros for a single ticket, will be paid 198 times this year, or five times more than in 2024.

El Gordo took about an hour and a half to appear this year. At precisely 10:44 a.m. (09:44 GMT), the lucky number 79.432 was drawn at the historic Teatro Real opera house in Madrid and sung by two students from the San Ildefonso boarding school to the cheers and applause of the audience.

Local media reported that the big windfall benefited several lottery ticket buyers in Madrid, but also several poorer villages in the León region, which were also seriously affected by forest fires this year.

One of these villages is La Bañeza, with a population of 10,000 inhabitants. There, four young girls whose families had purchased several tickets for the main prize applauded in front of the RTVE cameras. “We’ve been through a really tough time here. But now it’s time to party!” exclaimed one of them, beaming with joy.

The second prize of 1.25 million euros had already been drawn 15 minutes after the start of the lottery. It rose to number 70,048.

Enthusiastic people with bottles of sparkling wine quickly gathered in front of the outlet in Madrid’s Chueca district, where all 198 copies of the lucky ticket were sold.

“It’s incredible, most of the buyers are ordinary people from the neighborhood,” the merchant told RTVE cameras.

Jesús Huerta, director of the Spanish lottery company Loterias y Apuestas del Estado, said that the lottery promotes redistribution and to a certain extent compensates for social inequalities, because every year among the winners there are many people in need.

Indeed, in Madrid, Juan Manuel, an unemployed employee, was delighted to win €20,000. “I’m going to use it to pay off my debts and maybe take my first vacation with my wife in five years,” the 44-year-old told DPA in the capital.

The Christmas lottery is not just a game of chance in Spain, but a ritual that is an integral part of the lead-up to Christmas for the Spanish.

There was a lively party atmosphere around the Teatro Real and elsewhere on the streets – even among those who left empty-handed this time.

In total, 70% of the turnover goes to the winners. These revenues have increased steadily in recent years and now stand at just under €4 billion.

An entire ticket can be purchased for 200 euros, or just one or two tenths of a ticket can be purchased for 20 euros each.

Statistically, each Spaniard spent €76.08 this year, €2.20 more than last year.

Foreigners can participate in accordance with Spanish law. However, they must either reside there or be in the country at the time of purchase.