No one hit it big on Christmas Eve drawing; jackpot set to be 5th-largest in history

Wires
December 26, 2024

A Mega Millions logo is displayed on a vending machine at the Hoosier Lottery booth at the Indiana State Fair, Aug. 3, 2023, in Indianapolis. Darron Cummings photo

Hang onto those stocking-stuffer lottery tickets. As the AP reports, the growing Mega Millions jackpot has now surpassed $1 billion after no ticket matched all six numbers drawn on Christmas Eve. That means the estimated jackpot for Friday's drawing is $1.15 billion, potentially the fifth-largest jackpot in the game's history. The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350, while the odds of winning any Mega Millions prize are 1 in 24, according to lottery officials.


"We know that many people will likely receive tickets to Friday's drawing as holiday gifts, and what a gift that would turn out to be if you ended up with a ticket worth a $1.15 billion jackpot," Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium said in a statement. Tickets for the game are sold in 45 states, along with Washington, DC, and the US Virgin Islands. Mega Millions tickets are $2 a piece. Half of the proceeds from the sale of each ticket remains in the state where the ticket was sold. Drawings are held at 11pm Eastern on Tuesdays and Fridays.