 Newsletter Signup
Stay informed with the
NEW Casino City Times newsletter! Related Links
|
Gaming News
Mega Millions jackpot reaches $330 million31 August 2007RICHMOND, Virginia -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- With an estimated $330 million jackpot, the Mega Millions game is living up to its name and generating mega-excitement in Virginia. Lottery officials expect about 4,500,000 Mega Millions tickets will be purchased in Virginia on Friday, August 31, before the 11:00 p.m. drawing. During the busiest times of the day, such as the lunch hour and evening rush hour, about 9,100 tickets will be sold in Virginia per minute. More than 106,000 tickets purchased in Virginia won prizes in the most recent Mega Millions drawing, which was held on Tuesday, August 28. That includes one ticket that won $250,000, which was purchased in Lorton, and nine tickets that each won $10,000. "Every ticket purchased in Virginia benefits Virginia's K through 12 public schools," said Virginia Lottery Executive Director Sheila Hill-Christian. "That's what really makes this high jackpot exciting for us." The $330 million jackpot is currently the world's largest. If a single ticket matches all six numbers in Friday's drawing to win the jackpot, the winner will receive annual payments of about $12.6 million for 26 years. That translates into more than $34,500 per day for 26 years. If the winner chooses to take the immediate cash value of the jackpot, he or she will receive about $194.4 million before taxes. Since the current jackpot run began in July, Mega Millions sales in Virginia have generated approximately $13.6 million for Virginia's K-12 public schools. Mega Millions drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time. For more information please go to http://www.valottery.com. The odds of winning the jackpot are approximately one in 176 million. The odds of winning any of the Mega Millions prizes are approximately 1 in 40. In fiscal year 2006 the Lottery turned over more than $454 million for Virginia's public schools, representing about 10 percent of state funding for Virginia's K-12 public schools. |