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Christmas comes early for so many people on 22nd December, the day of the big Spanish El Gordo draw. Here’s our Help & FAQ section, where you will find all the answers to the most frequently asked questions for El Gordo.
What is El Gordo?
The “Sorteo Extraordinario de Navidad” is an annual lottery that takes place on 22nd December in Madrid, Spain. It is the biggest lottery in the world as measured by prize pool size. The estimated prize pool for this year’s draw is currently €2.6 billion.
The main jackpot prize is known as “El Gordo” – a huge €4,000,000 payout! (approx. £3.5m)
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 El Gordo work?
El Gordo 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 and lasts around 3 hours.
More than one person can buy the same number
In El Gordo, there are multiple copies or “series” of tickets, which means more than one person can have the same ticket number.
There are 185 “series” in total, so 185 sets of tickets from 00000 to 99999. This means that up to 185 people can potentially have the same ticket number and EACH win the ENTIRE first prize of €4,000,000.
You can buy shares of ticket numbers
Each ticket is made up of 10 shares, meaning you 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 of that ticket would win 1/100th of the prize – €40,000.
How does playing El Gordo at Lottoland work?
You choose a five-digit number between 00000 and 99999 that you think will be drawn at the official draw in Madrid on 22nd December.
If your number is drawn, then your ticket will win the same prize as if you had purchased a ticket for the official draw in Spain.
If you choose a “full” ticket, you will receive the full cash amount for that prize tier. If you bought a share of a ticket, you will receive a percentage of the prize money equivalent to your share.
How do I buy a ticket for El Gordo at Lottoland?
Click on the El Gordo tab and then start by choosing your number. This is a five-digit number from 00000 – 99999.
Next, choose whether you want to buy a full ticket or a ticket share. A full number costs £249.99, but you can buy a 1/100th ticket share for as little as £4.99.
Finally, click ‘Submit’ to be taken through to the cart where you can complete your purchase.
How much does it cost to play El Gordo at Lottoland?
The cost of your ticket will depend on the ticket share you decide to purchase.
Our cheapest share is 1/100th of a ticket for £4.99.
However, the larger the ticket share, the more you save. For instance, if you purchase a full number, you’ll pay just £249.99 – a huge saving of 50%!
| Prize share | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| 1/100th | £4.99 | |
| 1/50th | £8.99 | Save 10% |
| 1/20th | £19.99 | Save 20% |
| 1/10th | £34.99 | Save 30% |
| 1/5th | £64.99 | Save 35% |
| 1/2th | £149.99 | Save 40% |
| 1/1 | £249.99 | Save 50% |
As an example, if you placed a 1/5th ticket on El Gordo, it would cost you £64.99 and you could win a maximum jackpot of €4m divided by 5, which would be €800,000 (£680,000)
What are the odds of winning the “El Gordo” jackpot?
The odds of winning the €4,000,000 jackpot are 1 in 100,000, far lower than on any other multimillion pound jackpot draw.
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.
Please bear in mind that the prize values shown below are in euros. The exact value of the pounds sterling prize will depend on the euro-to-pound exchange rate.
| Prize Tier | Number of prizes | Prize payout € | Prize Payout £ (subject to currency variation) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Prize ("El Gordo") | 1 | €4,000,000 | £3,560,000 |
| 2nd Prize | 1 | €1,250,000 | £1,112,553 |
| 3rd Prize | 1 | €500,000 | £421,000 |
| 4th Prize | 2 | €200,000 | £170,000 |
| 5th Prize | 8 | €60,000 | £53,402 |
| 5 correct numbers | 1794 | €1,000 | £890 |
| Numbers before and after "El Gordo" |
2 | €20,000 | £17,800 |
| Numbers before and after 2nd prize | 2 | €12,500 | £11,125 |
| Numbers before and after the 3rd prize | 2 | €9,600 | £8,544 |
| First 3 digits of "El Gordo" | 99 | €1,000 | £890 |
| First 3 digits of 2nd prize | 99 | €1,000 | £890 |
| First 3 digits of 3rd prize | 99 | €1,000 | £890 |
| First 3 digits of 4th prize | 198 | €1,000 | £890 |
| Last 2 digits of "El Gordo" | 999 | €1,000 | £890 |
| Last 2 digits of 2nd prize | 999 | €1,000 | £890 |
| Last 2 digits of 3rd prize | 999 | €1,000 | £890 |
| Same last digit as "El Gordo" | 9999 | €200 | £178 |
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 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?
All your winnings are guaranteed to be paid out at Lottoland!
All bets are placed with EU Lotto Limited, licensed by the Government of Gibraltar and regulated by the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner (RGL 085 & 066).
