National Lottery Changes Coming in November

Updated: Monday 3rd September 2018

The National Lottery has announced that a number of changes will be introduced later this year, ensuring that the Lotto jackpot will be won more often with bigger fixed prizes available in other tiers. EuroMillions is also set to be freshened up in the spring of 2019, while a new annuity game is set to be launched next year.

What is Changing With Lotto?

You will continue to select six numbers from 1 to 59 when playing Lotto and the cost of a ticket will remain the same, but starting from the draw on Wednesday 21st November, you will notice several key changes to the prize structure.

The reward for matching five main numbers plus the Bonus Ball will be a guaranteed £1 million, while you will win £1,750 for matching five numbers. The prize for the ‘Match 4’ tier will be a fixed £140 and you will win £30 if you match three numbers. Currently the prizes vary from draw to draw in many of the tiers and you can end up with lower amounts of money than might be expected if there a high number of winners.

Under the new rules, the jackpot will only be allowed to roll over for a maximum of five consecutive times before it has to be won. If nobody matches all six main numbers in the draw when it must be won, then the money for the top prize will roll down and boost the value of prizes in all other tiers. If you match three main numbers, for example, you could end up winning £100 instead of £30.

The Lotto Millionaire Raffle will no longer be played, with the money going to the main draw instead to allow players to win bigger prizes than were previously available. Lotto HotPicks will be unaffected by the changes.

What is Changing With EuroMillions?

EuroMillions will remain largely the same, but more big events have been promised from spring 2019. The Millionaire Maker will guarantee that one player wins £1 million in every draw instead of the usual two, but there will be lots of special events offering multiple prizes of £1 million.

The first one will create a guaranteed 40 millionaires, while more big events have been planned for the rest of 2019.

What is the new Annuity Game?

The details of the new annuity game have yet to be finalised, but the National Lottery has confirmed that plans are still on track for one to be introduced in 2019. Annuity lotteries offer players the chance to receive regular payments rather than one-off jackpots, and it is anticipated that the new game will have a top prize that is worth thousands of pounds every month for at least 25 years.

Why Are The Changes Being Made?

The National Lottery has been working on these changes for some time after carrying out extensive research. Having spoken to players, non-players and retailers, it was found that most people wanted jackpots that were won more often and bigger prizes at the other levels. The aim is to increase excitement and help to generate as much money as possible to help good causes across the UK.

Published: Monday 3rd September 2018

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