But lottery winner has to make important decision

A village resident in the USA hit the mega jackpot with $800 million. What a difficult decision the winner now faces.

Michigan/USA – A lucky man from Michigan started the new year with an impressive lottery win of $800 million in the “Powerball” jackpot. The jackpot had not previously been won for 34 rounds and had increased steadily since October 2023. The lucky winner, who correctly guessed the numbers 5 out of 69 and the correct Powerball out of 29 balls, bought his lucky ticket in a supermarket in the tranquil village of Grand Blanc New York Times reported.

The odds of winning of one in 292.2 million make this win all the more remarkable. In comparison, the chance of winning is in the German lottery “6 out of 49” at one in 139.8 million – that's more than twice as high. But now the lucky winner has to make a decision: whether to receive the full sum of $800 million immediately or in installments.

“Powerball” jackpot in the USA: Winner has to choose between two payout options

The identity of the winner, who would go home with the equivalent of 750 million euros, remains a secret for the time being because the person has not yet redeemed their lottery ticket. In addition to the joy of winning, there is the difficult choice of whether the jackpot should be paid out in installments or just a portion of it, around $400 million, immediately. If the winnings are paid out in installments, the winner could look forward to a monthly payout of almost $2.3 million. If the winner were to have the $400 million paid out immediately, the rest would have to be foregone.

There is such a thing in Germany Mega jackpot in the lottery not possible because the maximum lottery jackpot has been limited to 50 million euros since November 2023 – previously it was 45 million euros. The situation is different with the Eurojackpot, which has a significantly higher limit with a maximum winnings of 120 million euros. In August 2023, a 36-year-old from Hamburg won the exorbitant sum of 117 million euros. By the way: Germany is the absolute leader in a European comparison, with a total of 60 Eurojackpot prize payouts. Finland ranks second with 22 wins, followed by Denmark with eleven.

New Year's jackpot luck: 10th highest win in US history

In the USA, things look much more spectacular in terms of winnings. Since 2016, nine jackpots in the U.S. have reached $1 billion, including four in 2023 alone. In January, a player in Maine won a “Mega Millions” jackpot worth $1.35 billion, followed by a $1.08 billion Powerball win in California in July and a $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot in Florida in August. In October, a $1.765 billion Powerball win in California tied for second-largest lottery jackpot in the United States. This is what the portal reports abc7news-com. The ten highest lottery winnings in the USA at a glance.

1. $2.04 billion
   
   The largest lottery jackpot to date, a Powerball drawing, was won on November 7, 2022. The note was sold at Joe's Service Center in Altadena, California.
2. 1.765 billion dollars
   
   A single Powerball ticket sold in California won the U.S. lottery's second-largest jackpot in October. If paid out in cash instead of an annuity, he would be worth $774.1 million before taxes.
3. $1.59 billion
   
   The third largest jackpot, also a Powerball, was divided by three. Winning numbers were drawn on January 13, 2016 for tickets purchased in Chino Hills, California, Munford, Tennessee and Melbourne Beach, Florida.
4. 1.58 billion dollars
   
   This was the Mega Millions jackpot won on August 9th. In late December, Miami company Saltines Holdings LLC was named the winner, according to the Florida Lottery, which accepted a lump sum payment of $794,248,882.
5. 1.54 billion dollars
   
   A single ticket sold in Simpsonville, SC won the Mega Millions jackpot on October 23, 2018. The prize was not claimed until March of the following year, when an anonymous winner came forward through an attorney and applied for a one-time lump sum of $877,784,124. Instead of accepting payments over 30 years.
6. 1.35 billion dollars
   
   A single ticket sold in Maine won an estimated $1.35 billion in the January 13, 2023 Mega Millions drawing. The winner came forward a month later but wanted to remain anonymous. So do the authorities. The individual received the winnings through a limited liability company in the form of a one-time cash payment of $723,564,144 before taxes.
7. 1.34 billion dollars
   
   The Mega Millions winning ticket was sold in Illinois on July 29, 2022. After several weeks, an anonymous winner came forward. Illinois is one of several states that allow winners to keep their names and addresses confidential.
8. 1.08 billion dollars
   
   After three months of no winner, a single ticket sold in Los Angeles won the Powerball jackpot on July 19, 2023. The winner has not yet declared. It was the second time in eight months that a winning ticket with a jackpot of more than $1 billion was sold in Los Angeles County. The winner can have the sum paid out as a lump sum, which would amount to about $558.1 million before taxes, according to Powerball.
9. 1.05 billion dollars
   
   A group calling itself the Wolverine FLL Club of Oakland County won just over $1 billion in the January 22, 2021 Mega Millions drawing after purchasing a ticket in Novi, Michigan.
10. $842.4 million
    
    A winning ticket for the New Year's Day Powerball drawing was sold in Grand Blanc, Michigan. This was announced by the Michigan Lottery. It was the second-largest jackpot ever won in Michigan, behind the $1.05 billion drawing in 2021. The 2024 winner has not yet reported to the lottery, the organization said. (ls)

The lottery jackpot in Germany was won dozens of times last year. This is shown by a current overview.