SACRAMENTO – Although no one in California won last night’s MEGA Millions jackpot, California Lottery players still have the chance to be crowned a millionaire by playing the New Year’s Million Dollar Raffle, but time is running out! California Lottery gives players the best odds of winning $1 million ever offered on a California Lottery game. Each ticket costs $20 and includes 5 unique (7 digit) raffle numbers. Hurry and purchase your tickets, before it’s too late!
When the winning numbers are drawn on New Year's Eve, the Million Dollar Raffle will create 555 winners. Over $6.5 million in prizes will be given away on New Year's Eve; five grand prizes of $1 million each, 50 winners of $10,000 each and 500 winners of $2008 each! Chances of winning the top prizes of $1 million are one in 130,000; the best odds ever offered by the California Lottery to win a million bucks. Odds of winning any prize are one in 1,171.
Unlike typical lottery drawings, tickets available for the Raffle are limited, but 555 winners are guaranteed! Only 650,000 tickets will be available; each ticket includes five chances to win for only $20. Numbers will be sold in sequence and when all 650,000 Raffle tickets are gone, they’re gone! Tickets are on sale now at the over 19,000 Lottery retailers in the state and are available until December 30, 2007 or until sold out, whichever comes first.
Over 95 cents of every Lottery dollar is returned to the community in the form of contributions to education, prizes and retail commissions. The California Lottery contributes at least 34 cents of every dollar that players spend on Lottery products to public education and returns more than 50 percent of sales to players in the form of prizes. Since its inception in 1985, the Lottery has contributed more than $19.6 billion to California schools out of total sales of more than $53.25 billion. Retailers win too, earning $3.4 billion in compensation since 1985.