Mega Millions Jackpot Exceeds $1 Billion Following Christmas Eve Draw with No Winning Numbers

December 25, 2024 TruthUSA

Hold onto those lottery tickets for stocking stuffers.

The Mega Millions jackpot has exceeded $1 billion after no ticket successfully matched all six numbers drawn on Christmas Eve. This brings the estimated jackpot for Friday’s drawing to $1.15 billion, which could potentially be the fifth-largest jackpot in the game’s history.

“We anticipate that many people will receive tickets for Friday’s drawing as holiday gifts, and what an exceptional gift that would be if your ticket turned out to be worth a $1.15 billion jackpot,” said Joshua Johnston, the lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, in a statement on Wednesday.

The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot stand at 1 in 302,575,350, while the likelihood of winning any Mega Millions prize is 1 in 24, as per lottery officials.

Tickets for the game are available in 45 states, as well as in the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Each Mega Millions ticket costs $2. Half of the revenue from ticket sales stays in the state where the ticket was purchased. Drawings take place at 11 p.m. ET on Tuesdays and Fridays.

“I can’t think of a more delightful way to celebrate the holidays—whether it’s Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, or any other manner people choose to celebrate this season—than by making dreams come true with a prize like this and other prizes that will be awarded at all levels of the game,” Johnston mentioned.