What about U.K. Powerball Players?
Starting last week, the Powerball Jackpot has expanded to include U.K. lottery players. Officials have said this expansion will lead to “faster-growing jackpots,” as the additional ticket sales will contribute to the prize fund. However, if a British Powerball ticket buyer wins, they will not be offered a lump-sum payout option and can only receive the jackpot split across 30 annual payments. The advertised jackpot prize for U.K. players is £352 million ($467.8 million). While this appears significantly lower than the $663 million U.S. prize, the U.K. National Lottery says it reflects the estimated amount a winner would receive over a 30-year period, “after exchange rates and UK tax requirements have been taken into account.”
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what to watch for
The next Powerball drawing is set to take place on Wednesday night. On Tuesday night, the Mega Millions lottery is set to hold its next drawing for a jackpot that has surged to $800 million.
key background
This is only the second lottery prize to cross the $650 million mark so far this year, behind only the ongoing Mega Millions jackpot. Of the prizes that have been claimed so far, the biggest of the year is a $533 million jackpot won by a Mega Millions ticket buyer from Illinois in March. The biggest completed Powerball jackpot of the year so far is a $250.8 million prize won by a lottery player from Arkansas.
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surprising fact
To win the jackpot, a Powerball ticket buyer will need to overcome astronomical odds of 1-in-292.2 million. These odds remain unchanged despite the addition of U.K. lottery players, but it’s worse than the Mega Millions jackpot’s already poor odds of 1-in-290.4 million.
further reading
Mega Millions Jackpot Hits To $800 Million—Here’s What The Winner Could Take Home (Forbes)
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