The Ultimate Guide to EuroMillions!

The EuroMillions Lottery offers the biggest lotto jackpot prizes on the continent. Give yourself a competitive advantage by reading our comprehensive guide to EuroMillions and gather all the information on the most popular pan-European lottery.

History of the EuroMillions Lottery

The EuroMillions lottery was launched in February 2004 by three participating countries: France, Spain and the UK. Just a few months later (on 8 September 2004, to be precise), six more countries joined the fold: Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Switzerland. Since its original establishment, EuroMillions has undergone a few changes. In 2009, a limit to the jackpot tally was introduced (the "cap") and in 2011 the lottery operators launched a second weekly draw on Tuesday nights. The very first EuroMillions draw took place on 13 February 2004. On that momentous night a French lottery player managed to scoop up the first EuroMillions jackpot in history.

EuroMillions Rule Changes

In 2006, the EuroMillions operators stipulated that there would be a maximum number of sequential draws in a jackpot life cycle. As a result, from that moment onwards, EuroMillions jackpots could only roll over 10 times (i.e. 11 draws). If there was still no first category winner at draw number 12, then the first category prize money (the jackpot) would be won by the winner(s) in the next winning category. It didn't take long, however, before this rule was annulled and a new put in its place. In November 2009, the EuroMillions lottery introduced an upper limit to its jackpot prize, the so called jackpot cap. Initially this limit was set at €185 million and it was agreed that every time anyone would win the jackpot at the cap stage, the future limit would be €5 million higher. The first time this happened was in July 2011, when the British couple Chris and Colin Weir won a €185 million EuroMillions jackpot. As a result the EuroMillions jackpot cap was increased with €5 million to €190 million. In 2012 the rule was amended once again - the maximum jackpot now remains at the €190 million level and at that stage the jackpot can only roll over once (and remain at the cap level). If the €190 million EuroMillions jackpot is not won after two draws, the amount gets divided up over the winner(s) in the next winning prize category.

EuroMillions Winning Prize Categories & Winning Odds

Changes to EuroMillions Game Format

When EuroMillions introduced a Tuesday draw in May 2011, it also applied changes to the game format. First of all, a new winning category was introduced for players who correctly match two main numbers, and the guessing range of the star numbers was increased from 9 to 11 numbers. To celebrate the changes, EuroMillions organised the first of its legendary Superdraws with a €100 million guaranteed jackpot.

EuroMillions Game Rules

Game formula: 5 main numbers plus 2 additional stars! EuroMillions lottery tickets have two fields. One table with Main Numbers from 1 to 50and another box with Star Numbers from 1 to 11. In the first table, players need to select 5 of the 50 main numbers, whilst in the second box they need to select two stars (from 1 to 11). When a player matches all 5 main numbers as well as the two star numbers, he or she wins the jackpot!

EuroMillions Lower Prize Categories

EuroMillions offers 13 prize categories. Aparimutuel betting system is used to calculate the prize pool for each category. In some countries, lotteries using these parimutual betting systems are colloquially called "totes" or "totos" after "totalisator" boards (shown in the image to the left). Tote boards display placed bets (E.g. in horse racing). In EuroMillions' parimutual system, all income generated by lotto ticket sales in participating countries is pooled together and prize money in the 13 prize categories fluctuates according to the height of the ticket sales.

EuroMillions Jackpot Prize Category

A EuroMillions player who matches all 5 main numbers plus the two star numbers correctly wins the jackpot. If there is no jackpot winner then the first prize money remains in the pot and is added to the jackpot for the next round. There is is, however, an upper jackpot limit of €190 million (the "jackpot cap"). All profit amounts that would normally elevate the prize money to beyond the €190 million level are immediately allocated to the next prize category with winners. If the €190 million jackpot is not won two draws in a row, the entire sum is divided up amongst the winners of the next prize category with winners.

Different Countries, Different Special Prizes!

In this section we take a closer look at extra prizes offered in the various participating countries.

1. EuroMillions France & My Million

Française des Jeux, the operator of France's national lottery games, is one of the founding members of the EuroMillions lottery. Moreover, the twice-weekly EuroMillions draws take place on French home soil - in the capital of Paris.

French EuroMillions Simply has a Certain "Je ne sais quoi"!

Since February 2014, French EuroMillions players automatically take part in the special French My Million raffle. The My Million draw takes place after the regular EuroMillions draw, so in principle you could win both games at the same time. For every purchased EuroMillions line you will automatically receive a raffle code. The winning code is randomly selected and the player whose raffle code matches the one drawn wins €1 million. Normally, only one winner per draw wins €1 million, but on special occasions more than one winner will enter the My Million Hall of Fame (and riches).

2. EuroMillions UK & Millionaire Maker

Like the French, the Brits, were one of the founders of the Pan-European EuroMillions lottery. Some of the largest EuroMillions jackpot prizes in history were in fact scooped up my British lotto players. Most EuroMillions fans will remember a certain Mr & Mrs Weir who won the €185 million jackpot back in 2011 (at the time this was the maximum jackpot). A year later saw the Bayford family win even more - €190 million.

Cool Britannia – Millionaire Maker

Back in 2009 the UK was the first EuroMillions country which introduced an extra lottery raffle to run alongside the regular EuroMillions draws. At every EuroMillions & UK Millionaire Maker draw you can win an additional prize of 1 million pounds sterling. In October 2014, the extra draw became even more exciting when Mega Fridays were introduced, where the UK National Lottert awards non-cash prizes on top of the £1 million. Mega Fridays take place on the last Friday of each calendar month. 10 Millionaire Maker packages are awarded and these include luxury prizes such as cruises, safaris, race cars and diamonds.

Hoe Does it Work?

The UK Millionaire Maker Raffle works in a similar fashion to France's My Million Raffle. Every lottery ticket line also has a Millionaire Maker Raffle code. After each EuroMillions draw, one or more of these codes are selected at random.

Superdraws

Even the monthly UK Millionaire Maker draws weren't special enough for the insatiable British lotto fans, so the National Lottery orchestrates occasional special raffles. One such superdraw took place on Friday 27th of July 2012. In one massive raffle 100 prizes of £1 million were paid out. Most of the Superdraws take place during holidays such as New Year's and Christmas.

3. EuroMillions Spain

In Spain and Andorra, the EuroMillions lottery is organised by Loteria de Apuestas, one of the world's biggest and most illustrious lottery operators. The biggest ever EuroMillions jackpot won on Spanish soil was €137 million (in 2014).

4. EuroMillions Ireland

EuroMillions' Irish operations are carried out by the UK National Lottery. One notable winner (from Northern Ireland) was Margaret Loughrey. The unemployed woman won €34 million in the EuroMillions, and whilst she allocated some her new assets to home refurbishment, she did in fact set up a charitable foundation to give most of fortune away to good causes her home town of Strabane.

5. EuroMillion Austria

Austria and Switzerland are the only German-speaking countries where you can physically buy tickets for the EuroMillions lottery (of course you can buy EuroMillions tickets online from wherever you like!). In Austria, EuroMillions is organised by the Österreichischen Lotterien and draws are broadcast live on the ORF2 television channel. The biggest jackpot won in Austria stems from 2008 when a man from Carinthia won more than €55 million. In 2014 someone from the Tirol scooped up nearly as much: an unbelievable €54.3 million. In 2009, another Austrian won the EuroMillions €100 Million Superjackpot, but unfortunately that winner had to share the prize with someone else, a player from France.

6. Euromilhões – Portugal

In Portugal they play Euromilhões - you say potato, I say Euromilhões. The game is organised by Lotto Organisation Jogo and draws are broadcast live on national television. Portugal has written quite a bit of EuroMillions history so far. The last big win occurred in 2014 when a Portuguese player won the maximum EuroMillions Jackpot worth a whopping €190 million.

7. EuroMillions Belgium

The Belgian National Lottery, like most major nation-wide organisations in multilingual Belgium these days, runs three separate operations: one for Flanders, one for Wallonia and one for the German-speaking part. The Boxing Day draw on December 26th, 2014, is not one the Belgians will forget easily. One Belgian won the jackpot that night and five Red Devils (as the Belgians call their sporting heroes) took home 2nd prizes! In 2007, a Belgian player won the Superdraw jackpot worth €100 million.

8. EuroMillions Luxembourg

The Luxembourg National Lottery organises EuroMillions in Luxembourg. Luxembourg has seen a few winners over the years. In 2013 someone from this beautiful country won €65 million and in January 2015 a lottery player from Luxembourg won over €31 million in the EuroMillions Lottery.

9. EuroMillions Switzerland

Switzerland and Liechtenstein are participants in the EuroMillions organisation. Operations are carried out by the Loteria Romandie and Swisslos. The Swiss EuroMillions record win is €93 million (in 2013).

EuroMillions on theLotter

theLotter offers players from around the world the opportunity to participate in three national versions of the EuroMillions lottery online. Our local offices purchase official EuroMillions tickets in the United Kingdom for the EuroMillions UK & Millionaire Maker, in France for the EuroMillions France & My Million, and for the regular Pan-European EuroMillions version we buy official lots in Spain. In addition, online lottery players can acquire a EuroMillions Subscription for any of the three versions we offer. Subscriptions allow you to automatically play every draw with your lucky numbers. You never have to worry about missing another draw deadline. Another option we offer is the EuroMillions Multi-Draw Packages. With multi-draw packs you pre-order tickets for a set number of draws.

EuroMillions Syndicates

EuroMillions Syndicates are probably the most lucrative EuroMillions play options. What's more: theLotter's syndicates are exclusive to our site and cannot be played anywhere else - neither online or offline! By joining groups of other online lottery players you are able to joint-purchase a large number of tickets and give your chance of winning the lottery an enormous boost.