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PlayAll nine participating countries have produced jackpot winners, but some have fared much better than others. France currently tops the table with 84, ahead of Spain on 82, while Luxembourg has had just two. Check out the EuroMillions Winners page for a full list. But what are the reasons for the differences?
Number of Players
As some of the EuroMillions countries have far bigger populations than others, it makes sense that more tickets are sold in those countries. There are around 65 million people living in France, for example, compared with just 580,000 in Luxembourg, so it is reasonable to expect the nation with the larger pool of eligible players will have more entries into EuroMillions draws and therefore a greater chance of winning the top prizes.
Early Starters
When EuroMillions was first launched in February 2004, tickets only went on sale in France, Spain and the UK. While it was only another eight months before the other six countries entered the game, the early starters have had more a few more opportunities to create jackpot winners, and France, Spain and the UK remain the three most successful countries.
System Entries
Some countries offer tickets where it is possible to mark off more than the usual five main numbers and two Lucky Stars. Participants have to pay for every additional combination, but these system entries are easy to play and increase your chances of winning. This might be one possible reason why Portugal has had nearly as many jackpot winners as the UK despite having a considerably smaller population - roughly 10 million compared with 65 million.
Random Variation
As each EuroMillions draw is a random, individual event, there is no guarantee that the number of jackpot winners produced by each country will correlate exactly to the number of players from each nation. In the same way that tossing a coin 100 times may not result in 50 heads and 50 tails, the location of the jackpot winner is entirely down to chance. The pattern of winners can also change over time, so it may be that in the next few years the UK claims the most jackpots.
Odds Remain The Same
While some players may wonder if they are residing in a particularly unlucky country and cast envious eyes towards somewhere else in Europe, the important thing to remember is that the odds of any one line winning the jackpot are exactly the same, whether you are playing from France, the UK or Luxembourg. There are reasons why France has had so much success, but each individual entry has an identical chance.
If you fancy trying to win the next big jackpot, you can pick your numbers online now or visit an authorised retailer in any of the participating countries, but there’s no need to fly out somewhere specially! Good luck!
