Maybe this means another stop today on your shopping list!
Strong sales in Iowa and across the country have pushed the giant Mega Millions® jackpot to an estimated $1 billion annuity, $448.8 million lump-sum amount, for tonight’s Christmas Eve drawing.
The current jackpot is the 7th-largest in Mega Millions history and hovers just under the Top 10 list of the biggest jackpots in any U.S. lotto game.
The Mega Millions jackpot was won 10 times in calendar year 2023 but has been hit only 3 times so far in 2024. That demonstrates the random nature of a game like Mega Millions, where no one knows when the next big winner will hit.
With Iowa Lottery offices closed tomorrow and Thursday for the holiday, players can check the lottery website for the latest jackpot and winner updates.
Will The Holiday Season Change Ticket-Buying Patterns?
In the usual ticket-purchasing patterns for Mega Millions, the day of the drawing always has the highest sales. And sales generally peak that day from 4-7 p.m. as a lot of people head home from work.
But with the holidays this week, players’ purchasing patterns may be different, with a lot of people on vacation and out of their normal routines. The “normal” patterns may fall by the wayside for this drawing.
The added attention on tonight’s drawing also emphasizes the point that lottery drawings happen every day of the year, even when the drawing date falls on a holiday.
How Has The Jackpot Gotten This Big?
Time combined with sales are why the jackpot has grown so large.
The Mega Millions jackpot has been growing for nearly 4 months. It was last won in the drawing on Sept. 10.
The jackpot increases from drawing to drawing when there is no grand-prize winner, and sales generally increase as the jackpot climbs higher. And higher sales, in turn, push the jackpot even higher.
What’s That About ‘Coverage’?
A detail that gets a lot of attention in Mega Millions drawings is the coverage estimate. By tracking sales, lottery officials can estimate how many of all the possible combinations in the game have been purchased for a particular drawing.
It’s called coverage – how many of the combinations have been purchased, or “covered.”
The coverage estimate for tonight’s 10 p.m. drawing is about 25 percent. A higher coverage percentage can mean it’s more likely there will be a jackpot winner, but it is not a definite. There have been jackpot winners when the coverage estimate was in the single digits, and winners when the estimate was much higher.
The Deadline To Buy
Remember that the deadline in Iowa to buy tickets for the Mega Millions drawing is 8:59 p.m. on the night of the drawing.
If you buy a ticket after that, it will be for an upcoming drawing and you won’t be in the running for that night’s giant prize.
Play Healthy
The Iowa Lottery reminds players to enjoy the moment, but remember that you are gambling when you buy tickets. There is no guarantee that you’ll win. Playing the lottery is something that should be done just for fun.
The Iowa Lottery keeps these and other “Play Smart, Be Informed” details on its website to help everyone have an accurate understanding of how the lottery works.
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