Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis

One of the most dominant jackpots worldwide is the Mega Millions. But it wasn’t always the case. As seen in this Mega Millions Jackpot analysis, the first official draw was in 2002 on May 17^th. But the Mega Millions was actually founded in 1996 under the name ‘The Big Game’.

The Mega Millions Jackpot is an American multi-jurisdictional lottery. January 2020 reported the lottery reached 47 states in the US.

Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis: History

Without a shadow of a doubt, the Mega Millions Jackpot has come a long way since 2002. Initially, the lottery was started with only six states taking part. Nowadays, the lottery is drawn twice per week, on Tuesdays and Fridays at 11pm Eastern time.

Currently, only Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah and Puerto Rico do not sell Mega Millions tickets. To find options nearby check out the best jackpot reviews in your country

Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis: How it works

So, what is there to really know about the Mega Millions Jackpot?

The Mega Millions is a progressive lottery. That means that unless the grand prize is won, it’s constantly growing.

The Mega Millions Jackpot contains 5 white balls – from numbers 1 to 70 – plus a gold-colored “MegaBall”. The MegaBall varies between the numbers 1 to 25.

Mega Millions has various perks to it. A single ticket costs $2. However, players can opt to pay $3 to get a ‘Megaplier’ which multiplies non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, 4 or 5.

Aside from that, players can also pay $3 to get two tickets, but are exempt from non-jackpot prizes and can only win the massive prize itself.

Mega Millions works with a Random Number Generator (RNG) system. That means that the white numbers are drawn at a completely random sequence. Whilst the golden MegaBall is drawn from 25 balls.

Winners of the Mega Millions Jackpot can choose for a cash-sum paid on the spot or an annuity option. The annuity is paid yearly within 30 years with a 5% interest rate.

Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis: Largest Winners

The smallest Mega Millions advertised jackpot is worth $40 million. Thus, without being won, the prize keeps on getting bigger, making it a progressive jackpot.

To this date, the 2018 October 23^rd jackpot win of $1.537 billion is the second largest jackpot win of all time. That comes after the $1.586 billion won in January 2016 on Powerball. The big difference is, that prize was shared among three winners, whilst the Mega Millions sum was awarded to one anonymous woman.

As requested, she remains unknown to this day, but her lawyer has stated that she has donated to a great deal of charities.

Back in 2000, whilst Mega Millions was still known as The Big Game, two winners shared a prize of $363 million.

December 17^th, 2013 saw two winners claim the second largest annuity value ever. The jackpot was worth $648 million.

Mega Millions and Powerball

Before 2010, states would either sell Mega Millions or Powerball lottery tickets. As you may imagine, these were the two giants of the lottery market in the US.

However, on January 31^st, 2010, states started buying-in to the idea of the ‘Mega Power Lottery’. That meant some states, such as Montana, Colorado, South Dakota and Arizona, would sell both Mega Millions and Powerball tickets.

This development was huge for both lottery companies with now 47 states offering both Mega Millions and Powerball options. The cross-over sales of both lotteries in the US is still strong today.

Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis: Overall Assessment

Unfortunately, the Mega Millions Jackpot is only available for US citizens residing in the correct state. Not all states sell tickets for the lottery.

However, thanks to special online lottery sites such as theLotter or Lotto Agent, players from all around the world can participate to win monstrous jackpots. Mega Millions is one of the most prestigious lotteries in the United States, yet alone the world, according to the best jackpot site ratings.
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