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We explain an app trick to help find YOUR most profitable numbers
FROM buying a Ferrari to holidaying in the Seychelles, we’ve all got a plan for how to splash the cash if we win the EuroMillions.
Players have a chance of scooping a £145million jackpot this evening – and now, top lottery expert Simon Horne exclusively tells Sun readers how to boost your chances of bagging the whole lot.
Millions of us buy a Euromillions ticket each week with the hope of winning a huge windfall.
You pick five numbers from 1-50 and two lucky stars from 1-12, or you can choose a lucky dip – which is when the numbers are randomly selected for you.
The jackpot on offer this evening is £145million – which, although is a huge pot of money, isn’t as big as the record-breaking £208million prize that was won by a lucky Irish ticket holder in June.
It made the lucky winner instantly richer than the likes of Adele, Dua Lipa and Harry Kane.
From picking your lucky numbers to whether you should join a syndicate, there’s a heap of practical ways to boost your chances of getting richer overnight.
Of course, the only real way of increasing your chances of winning is to buy more tickets.
Make sure you gamble responsibly. Only gamble with money you can afford to lose, and set a money limit before playing.
If you need advice, visit gamcare.org.uk or GambleAware.org.
A lottery syndicate is when a group of people put money into a pot for lottery tickets.
There will be one person in charge – the syndicate manager – who will buy tickets and share out any winnings out among the group.
Playing as part of a group could be a good way of boosting your chances of winning, as Simon, from The National Lottery operator Allwyn UK, explains.
“If you join a syndicate of 10 people, then there’s 10 tickets and 10 chances of winning, so there’s clearly a greater chance of winning compared to if you just bought your own ticket,” he said.
The syndicate manager will need to register the group and list themselves as the person in charge with The National Lottery.
Make sure to write all the terms and conditions of the agreement down, and get each person to sign it, said Simon.
“If there’s any confusion or complications down the line, then you can refer back to the agreement and then everyone knows where they stand,” he said.
The big downside to consider being part of a syndicate is that you’ll need to equally split the pot between each person.
So, if you were part of a syndicate of four people, splitting the £145million jackpot four ways would leave you with over £36million each – although that’s still big winnings to walk away with.
You might think that picking up the most common numbers may mean you are more likely to win.
The number 20 has been drawn the most at 111 times, according to Lottery.co.uk, which tracks lottery results.
That’s followed by the number 21 and 23, which has been drawn 109 times, then 42 (107 times) then 29 (104 times).
The most common Lucky Stars are 3, which has been drawn 181 times and 2, which has been drawn 176 times.
But you’re better off picking whichever numbers you feel are best, said Simon.
That’s because, statistically, each number has an equal chance of being drawn.
Many people pick their birthday numbers because they think they are lucky.
“We all have lucky numbers – I know plenty of players who lean on lucky numbers, which could be phone numbers or numbers passed down from family members,” said Simon.
“Every set of numbers has the same chance of coming out.
“The best strategy to play is the one that you think will bring you luck.”
Not sure your lucky numbers are working for you?
You could keep an eye on how often your lucky numbers are being drawn, and if they’re not coming up as often as you would like, you can try a different tact.
The National Lottery app stores all your tickets from draws you have entered.
The app is free to download from either the App Store on iPhone, or the Google Play store on Android devices.
That means you can go back in and check your most profitable numbers.
YOU'VE got to be in it to win it.
Every time you buy a ticket the odds of winning increase.
But WARNING – only spend what you can afford. At the end of the day, it’s down to luck.
This is why some people prefer to be part of a syndicate, where multiple tickets are bought.
While this means you’ll have to share the pot, the odds become more favourable each ticket you buy.
You could make a spreadsheet of how often your lucky numbers are being drawn, and every three months, see whether it’s worth keeping them, or ditching them for alternatives.
According to Lottery.co.uk, the unluckiest Euromillions numbers are
You might want to avoid “unlucky” numbers – which are the ones drawn the least.
These are 22 (66 times), 40 (74 times) and 18 and 43 (78 times).
The National Lottery app is free to download from either the App Store or Google Play.
Timing matters when it comes to buying your ticket, said Simon.
If you leave it to the last minute, then there’s a risk that you run out of time to buy your ticket.
You need to buy your ticket before 7:30pm tonight – otherwise you’ll miss out.
“My main advice is not to leave it too late – don’t rush into the newsagents or load up your app at 7:25pm,” he said.
“You might not be able to upload money onto your online account, or buy your ticket, in time and you could miss the draw.”
BETWEEN them all, the top 10 richest lottery winners have bagged a combined £1.6billion.
But who are the lucky winners? Here’s the top 10 richest players who bagged the jackpot:
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