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Christmas Lottery Product Rules
Christmas comes early for so many people on 22nd December, the day of the big Spanish Christmas Lottery draw.
*Lottoland South Africa will payout the Rand equivalent of the Euro exchange rate at the time of the payout.
What is the Spanish Christmas Lottery?
The “Sorteo Extraordinario de Navidad” is an annual lottery event that takes place on 22nd December in Madrid, Spain. It is the biggest lottery event in the world as measured by the collective prize pool size. The estimated prize pool for this year’s draw is currently €2.4 billion (as of 16/12/2020).
The main Tier 1 prize is known as “El Gordo” – a huge €4,000,000* payout!
*(ZAR equivalent)
How do Spanish people celebrate this huge Christmas tradition?
In Spain, more than 90℅ of the population celebrates this fantastic chance to receive the Christmas gift of a lifetime. The drawing of the winning numbers is a major highlight of the Spanish festive season, with family and friends coming together in homes, restaurants, taverns and town squares across the country to watch it all unfold. Children from an orphanage founded with lottery money even sing the numbers out as the draw takes place!
How does the Spanish Christmas Lottery work?
The Spanish Christmas Lottery works more like a raffle than a lottery. There are no lottery balls; instead, there are two huge drums that contain all the purchased tickets – just like a raffle.
Each ticket has a number between 00000 and 99999. When the draw takes place, players win a prize if the numbers on their ticket match those on a ticket drawn from the drum.
The total prize pool is broken down into prize “tiers”, each with a varying number of prizes on offer: for example, there is only one “El Gordo” first prize drawn, but the sixth tier, known as “La Pedrea”, has 1794 prizes of €1,000!
The draw for all the various prize tiers takes place in Madrid on 22nd December from 10.15 SAST and lasts around 3 hours. *(Keeping in mind the time difference from summer to winter times and vice versa).
In the actual lottery, more than one person can buy the same number
In the Spanish Christmas Lottery, there are multiple copies or “series” of tickets, which means more than one person can have the same ticket number.
There are 170 “series” in total, so 170 sets of tickets from 00000 to 99999. This means that up to 170 people can potentially have the same ticket number and EACH win the ENTIRE first prize of €4,000,000.
In the actual lottery, a person can buy a share or a fraction of ticket numbers
Each ticket is made up of 10 shares, meaning a person can actually buy a 1/10th single share of a ticket, otherwise known as a décimo. This costs 1/10th of the usual ticket price and returns 1/10th of any prize it might win.
For example:
If a ticket number wins the “El Gordo” first prize, then the holder of a “full” ticket would win €4m. A player that holds only a single 1/100th share/fraction of that ticket would win 1/100th of the prize – €40,000.
How does playing the Spanish Christmas Lottery at Lottoland work?
At Lottoland you are betting on the outcome of the Spanish Christmas Lottery draw. You choose a five-digit number between 00000 and 99999 that you think will be drawn at the official event in Madrid on 22nd December.
If your number is drawn, then your bet will win the same prize money as if you had purchased a ticket for the official draw in Spain.
If you choose a “full” bet, you will receive the full payout for that prize tier. If you bought a fraction of a bet, you will receive a percentage of the prize money equivalent to your fraction bet.
How do I place a bet on the Spanish Christmas Lottery at Lottoland?
Click on the Christmas Lottery tab and then start by choosing your lucky numbers. This is a five-digit number from 00000 – 99999.
Next, choose whether you want to place a full bet or a fractional bet. A full number costs R4,000, but you can place a 1/100th fractional bet for as little as R80.
Finally, click ‘Submit’ to be taken through to the bet slip where you can complete your purchase.
How much does it cost to bet on the Spanish Christmas Lottery at Lottoland?
The cost of your bet (stake value) will depend on the fractional bet you decide to place.
Our lowest fractional bet is R80 and a 1/100th of the full recommended stake value.
However, the larger the stake, the more you save. For instance, if you purchase a full bet, you’ll pay just R4,000 – a huge saving of 50%!
| Prize share | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| 1/100th | R80 | |
| 1/50th | R145 | Save 9% |
| 1/20th | R320 | Save 20% |
| 1/10th | R560 | Save 30% |
| 1/5th | R1,050 | Save 34% |
| 1/2th | R2,400 | Save 40% |
| 1/1 | R4,000 | Save 50% |
As an example, if you placed a fractional bet of 1/5th on the Spanish Christmas Lottery event, it would cost you R1,050 and you could stand a chance to win a maximum top prize of €4m*(ZAR equivalent) divided by 5, which would be €800,000*(ZAR equivalent).
*Lottoland South Africa will payout the Rand equivalent of the Euro exchange rate at the time of the payout.
What are the odds of winning the “El Gordo”?
The odds of winning the top prize of €4,000,000* (ZAR equivalent) are 1 in 100,000; far lower than on any other multimillion euro lottery event.
*Lottoland South Africa will payout the Rand equivalent of the Euro exchange rate at the time of the payout.
What are the different prize tiers available?
The following table explains the different prize tiers, the number of prizes available for each tier and the individual prize returns for each tier.| Prize Tier | Number of prizes | Prize payout* |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Prize ("El Gordo") | 1 | €4,000,000 |
| 2nd Prize | 1 | €1,250,000 |
| 3rd Prize | 1 | €500,000 |
| 4th Prize | 2 | € 200,000 |
| 5th Prize | 8 | €60,000 |
| 5 correct numbers | 1794 | €1,000 |
| Numbers before and after "El Gordo" |
2 | €20,000 |
| Numbers before and after 3nd prize | 2 | €12,500 |
| Numbers before and after the 3rd prize | 2 | €9,600 |
| First 3 digits of "El Gordo" | 99 | €1,000 |
| First 3 digits of 2nd prize | 99 | €1,000 |
| First 3 digits of 3rd prize | 99 | €1,000 |
| First 3 digits of 4th prize | 99 | €1,000 |
| Last 2 digits of "El Gordo" | 999 | €1,000 |
| Last 2 digits of 2nd prize | 999 | €1,000 |
| Last 2 digits of 3rd prize | 999 | €1,000 |
| Same last digit as "El Gordo" | 9999 | €200 |
How does DoublePayout work on the Spanish Christmas Lottery event?
The DoublePayout bet on the Spanish Christmas Lottery allows you to play for twice the official amount on the first three prize tiers for double the price of the bet. For instance, if you won the first prize tier having purchased a full bet, your bet would cost R8,000 instead of R4,000, and instead of winning a €4m* jackpot, you would win €8m* (ZAR equivalent).
What do I do if I win?
If your account has been verified, simply proceed to your account and withdraw your winnings. If your account has not been verified, you will first need to provide proof of your ID and proof of address. Once this has been confirmed, you will be able to withdraw your winnings.
Is the payout guaranteed? How do I know?
We are registered with and regulated by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, under bookmaker license number 10185706-001. In order for us to retain these licences we have to prove that we are able to make the required payouts to our players should they win and that we have the correct procedures in place to guarantee this.
