Europe’s Biggest Lottery Wins
One of the greatest things about winning lottery jackpots in Europe, other than the sheer life-changing amounts involved, is that unlike in America and other territories, they are not taxed by governments.
As well as that, all jackpots are handed out to winners as one big sum and not drip-fed to them on a monthly or yearly basis meaning lifestyles are often completely changed overnight.
While it’s terrific that lotteries around Europe, which are often linked by the whole bloc, bit billions into charitable foundations what we really want to know is what the biggest lottery wins in Europe have been.
The Top 5 Lottery Wins in Europe as of 2020
The top five lottery wins in the continent have all been claimed by just one ticket holder, instantly making some of them celebrities. Here they are:
€200 Million in France, 2020
The all-time record in Europe was broken in December 2020 when €200 million was scooped by a player in France on the EuroMillions.
Players from around the continent can play the EuroMillions, in fact, it is incredibly popular in the UK, though France has definitely done best out of this particular lottery as 110 out of 499 EuroMillions jackpots since 2004 have been claimed by Gallic ticket holders.
The latest win was claimed after the jackpot had rolled over twice the week before it was finally won.
€190 Million in the UK, 2019
Amounting to just over £170 million, the jackpot in October 2019 was finally scooped by a lucky UK ticket holder after a record-breaking run of 18 rollovers in the EuroMillions took the prize to its maximum – and it still took another four draws before it was won!
The winner was amazingly kept out of the limelight to a degree given that at roughly the same time, an almost unbelievable $1.537 BILLION was won in the United States by a player from South Carolina.
€190 Million in Spain, 2017
Smartly remaining anonymous after their win, one jackpot scorer received the maximum €190 million jackpot in October 2017 after the EuroMillions rolled over six times.
The lucky winner bought their ticket in Gran Canaria, a very popular holiday resort for many around mainland Europe raising the possibility that the winner may not even be from Spain.
€190 Million in Portugal, 2014
Another anonymous win was claimed from the Iberian Peninsula back in October 2014 when the €190 million EuroMillions jackpot was claimed in Portugal. The ticket was bought from a small town called Castelo Branco, right near the Spanish border.
€190 Million in the UK, 2012
Worth some £148 million at the time, a UK winner landed the EuroMillions jackpot in 2012. A couple from Suffolk, England named by the press as Adrian and Gillian Bayford were the lucky winners and became the UK’s biggest lottery winners.
As if to prove why so many huge lottery jackpot winners are advised to stay anonymous, the Bayford’s were hounded by the tabloid press in Britain after posing for pictures featuring their giant novelty £148.6 million cheque and were inundated with requests for a portion of their money.
These are huge lottery wins with every one of them changing the lives of the ticket holders instantly. At the same time the EuroMillions has managed to keep thousands of charities going since it launched back in 2004 – long may that continue.
