Lotto Changes to Take Effect on 8th October 2015
Last Updated: Thursday 24th September 2020, 14:22
A date has been set for a huge shake-up to the way Lotto is played, including the introduction of a Millionaire Raffle that guarantees one ticket holder in each draw will win £1 million. From Thursday 8th October, players will also have ten more balls to choose from as well as the chance to win a new prize of a Lucky Dip ticket by matching just two main numbers. It is expected that, with the introduction of the new winning tier, almost two million more prizes will be distributed by Lotto every week.
The odds of winning the jackpot will rise from 1 in 13,983,816 to 1 in 45,057,474, but the odds of becoming a millionaire will stand at a very tempting one in approximately 10 million thanks to the brand-new Millionaire Raffle. You will also have a 1 in 9.3 chance of winning any prize, compared with current odds of 1 in 54 shot currently.
The winning Millionaire Raffle code will be drawn alongside 20 regular Lotto Raffle codes, each worth £20,000.
The last draw before the Lotto changes come into force will take place on Wednesday 7th October, with the new ball pool and prize structure in place in time for the draw on Saturday 10th October. From that point onwards, the jackpot will be able to roll over more than the current limit of four times, and will instead keep going until it hits a pre-agreed figure. After that, there can only be one more rollover before the jackpot has to be won, rolling down to the next winning prize tier if no one matches all six numbers. This means that jackpot amounts will be able to far exceed the figures they reach at the moment.
Lotto HotPicks, which uses the numbers drawn in the main game to complete its winning line, is also changing on the same day, with the top prize for predicting five of the main Lotto numbers rising from £130,000 to £350,000.
Visit the Lotto Changes page to find the full list of upcoming adjustments, plus a look at the key moments from the history of the game.
The last time major changes were made to Lotto was October 2013, when Lotto Raffle was launched and the cost of a single play was raised from £1 to £2, the first price increase since the game had begun 19 years earlier. The adjustments were made to increase contributions to the Good Causes Fund, and lottery officials state that £250 million more has been raised over the last two years than would have been had the changes not been implemented.
Lotto tickets for tonight’s £2 million draw are on sale now online or from authorised retailers across the UK. Good luck!