What is a EuroMillions Superdraw?
A Superdraw, also referred to as a jackpot event or even a Megadraw in some countries, is a EuroMillions draw which offers a stupendous guaranteed jackpot. Superdraws are usually scheduled a few times a year, and ensure the top prize will be a magnificent nine-figure amount.
The jackpot for the Superdraw on Friday 20th April will be €130 million (approximately £112 million). The draw will take place at the same time as a regular draw, approximately 21:00 local time in Paris (20:00 UK time), with the prize breakdown released shortly afterwards.
Ticket sales will close at around 20:30 local time (19:30 in the UK). You enter a Superdraw in the same way as you would play any other draw, by visiting an authorised retailer in one of the nine participating countries or by taking part online.
How can you know the jackpot so far in advance?
Superdraws are usually scheduled a few weeks in advance. It is therefore not possible to know what will happen to the jackpot in the draws between the announcement and the Superdraw. However, Superdraw jackpots are guaranteed so it does not matter how large the top prize is in the draw prior to the Superdraw, or even whether the jackpot has been won or not.
The money for Superdraw jackpots comes from the EuroMillions Booster Fund (also known as the Reserve Fund). The Booster Fund receives a percentage of the money raised from ticket sales in every draw and its primary purpose is to ensure that there there are always sufficient funds available for the game’s minimum jackpot of €17 million. When the Booster Fund runs at an excess, the nine EuroMillions countries can agree to hold a special event such as a Superdraw or European Millionaire Maker.
If the EuroMillions jackpot that had been accumulating prior to the Superdraw turned out to be higher than the advertised amount, it would just keep building and the Superdraw would be postponed until a later date. This previously happened in 2014. A Superdraw jackpot of €100 million was planned for Friday 6th June, but the top prize increased from €88.9 million in the previous draw to €106.8 milion on the night as a result of ticket sales alone, so the Booster Fund was not required. Learn more about the Booster Fund on the EuroMillions Prizes page.
What happens if the Superdraw jackpot is not won?
In 19 previous Superdraws, the jackpot has been won on the night seven times, and six different countries can claim Superdraw winners. The last time this happened was on Friday 30th June 2017, when a UK player snapped up a sensational £87.5 million (€100 million). The lucky winner came forward less then a week later to claim the prize and opted to remain anonymous.
If the Superdraw jackpot is not won, it will roll over to the next draw as normal and an even larger prize will be available. Superdraws have therefore been responsible for helping to create some of the biggest EuroMillions winners in history.
How high can the jackpot grow?
The EuroMillions jackpot can grow up to a limit of €190 million. When it reaches this level it is capped and cannot climb any higher. Funds which would normally go towards the jackpot are instead diverted to the next tier in which there are winners - most likely the category for matching five main numbers and one Lucky Star. The top prize can stay at €190 million for a maximum of four more draws, but if nobody matches all five main numbers and both Lucky Stars in the fifth draw at €190 million the full amount will roll down to the next winning tier.
The jackpot has never had to roll down to a lower tier, but there have been three occasions when the top prize has reached its €190 million cap and then been won by players matching the full winning line. It has hit this level as a direct result of a Superdraw on two occasions.
Previous €190 million winners
The last time the EuroMillions jackpot got up to €190 million was just after the most recent Superdraw, on Friday 15th September 2017. The top prize kept rolling and hit its cap on Tuesday 3rd October. In the following draw, on Friday 6th October, a single Spanish player pocketed the full jackpot for themselves.
The ticket was bought in Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria, at El Mirador’s shopping centre, and in a remarkable twist of fate, two other huge lottery prizes were won on the island on the same night.
A Portuguese player won €190 million on Friday 24th October 2014 after matching all five main numbers and both Lucky Stars. A large part of that jackpot had been generated by a Superdraw on Friday 3rd October, which lifted the jackpot to €100 million. Six rollovers later came the Portuguese participant’s lucky day. The winner had 90 days to come forward and claim their prize, and they decided to keep their identity private when they collected the money.
Big winners from the UK
Adrian and Gillian Bayford from the UK were the first players to win a EuroMillions jackpot worth €190 million (£148.6 million) on Friday 10th August 2012. Unlike the other two winners of €190 million, their success did not follow a Superdraw, and it took 14 rollovers to build up the big jackpot. Adrian went on to open up his own music shop, which featured the world’s largest collection of Lady Gaga Memorabilia, and move into a lavish £6 million mansion in Cambridgeshire. Find out more about big EuroMillions Winners, including a table of which countries have been the most successful.
How can I improve my chances of winning?
There are certain ways you can boost your chances of winning a Superdraw jackpot. Purchasing too many tickets on your own is probably not practical, and certainly not cheap, but you could team up with other players in a syndicate to keeps costs down and grab a share of many more entries.
Playing in a group with work colleagues or friends is a fun way to try and win together, but organisationally it can also require a lot of effort. As an alternative, you can join an online syndicate. It is a quick and easy process, as you just need to decide how many shares you wish to purchase. The more you buy, the bigger your return if your numbers come up. By playing online, your numbers are stored securely so there is no danger of them being lost or damaged, and you will be automatically paid out if you win.
By having a share of multiple entries in an online syndicate, you are giving yourself more chances to win rather than just having one chance if you bought an individual line on your own. You can also select a monthly subscription to save over 50%, which might seem like a particularly good idea at the current time with the jackpot potentially set to head towards record territory once again.
What do I do if I win EuroMillions?
If you play EuroMillions online, you will be notified if you win a prize, so there is little chance of missing out on your money. The majority of prizes will also be paid directly into your online account. If you have bought a EuroMillions ticket from a retailer, the claims process depends on how much you have won. Smaller prizes can be claimed from any official retailer, while larger amounts will require you to contact the National Lottery operator in the country where you bought your ticket. Learn more about how to claim EuroMillions prizes.
You can also use the EuroMillions Checker to see if you have matched any winning combinations in the Superdraw, or any other draw from the past 180 days.
Don’t miss your chance to win
There were only two Superdraws in 2017 and the upcoming event will be the first of its kind this year, so opportunities to enter these incredible draws are not to be missed. You need to match five main numbers from 1 to 50 and two Lucky Stars from 1 to 12 to land the jackpot, but there are also 12 other prize tiers so you can bank cash sums for matching as few as two main numbers. By playing multiple lines in a syndicate, you stand a better chance of collecting several smaller awards even if you miss out on one of the top prizes.
Whether the Superdraw jackpot is won on the night or rolls over and continues to climb, it promises to be another spectacular event and Euro-Millions.com will have the winning numbers and prize information for you as soon as they are available. Good luck!