History of Thunderball
The history of Thunderball has seen a number of changes made to the game since it launched in 1999. Today, players must match five main numbers from 1 to 39 and a Thunderball between 1 and 14 to win £500,000, with each entry costing £1. Here is a timeline of the key events, including extra draws being added and shifts to the game's matrix:
2010
14th May 2010
- The first Friday Thunderball draw took place.
12th May 2010
- Five more main balls were added, taking the total from 34 to 39.
- The jackpot rose to £500,000 from £250,000.
- An extra prize tier for matching just the Thunderball was introduced.
2009
November 2009
- Thunderball began using new Smartplay Halogen II draw machines.
2002
23rd Oct 2002
- A Wednesday draw was added to the existing Saturday draw.
1999
12th Jun 1999
- Thunderball was drawn for the first time.