EuroMillions Changes: What You Get for Your Extra 50p
Last Updated: Thursday 24th September 2020, 09:53
Changes to EuroMillions are taking place in September 2016, the first major adjustment in the way the game works across all nine participating countries since 2011. There has been intense debate raging amongst lottery fans across social media as a result of the announcement last week, which will see more Millionaire Maker prizes distributed in every draw, two new supplementary games introduced and faster-growing jackpots as well as an extra Lucky Star and a new price of £2.50 per line for UK players.
National-Lottery.com users took part in a poll recording their reaction to the EuroMillions changes, with more than 1,500 players contributing by the time it closed. The results were as follows:
- 15.25% - ‘Like’
- 77.15% - ‘Dislike’
- 7.6% - ‘Don’t Care’
The main complaint about the new look EuroMillions on National-Lottery.com’s social media accounts was about the price rise, so it is worth looking a little deeper into why the price is rising and what players will receive in return for the extra 50p per line.
Why is the Price of a EuroMillions Line Rising?
The cost of most things that people buy or use on a regular basis increases over time due to inflation, but the price of a single EuroMillions line has stayed static since 2009. To put that in context, the average cost of a litre of petrol at the start of 2009 was 87.15p, but as of June 2016 it had reached 109.2p. This rise of 25.3 percent is in line with the 25 percent increase EuroMillions players will notice from 24th September onwards.
Extra Millionaire Maker Prizes
The big difference is that a litre of petrol is still only a litre of petrol, whereas EuroMillions will be bigger and better once the changes are made, offering you even more chances to win. For the extra 50p you get another chance to win £1 million in every draw as a second Millionaire Maker prize is guaranteed to be won each time EuroMillions is played. Your odds of picking up the top prize in this supplementary game improve significantly, from approximately 1 in 4.8 million on a Tuesday at the moment to 1 in 1.9 million after September and from 1 in 7.5 million in the Friday draw to 1 in 2.95 million following the changes.
European Millionaire Maker is Launched
A new game, played across the nine participating EuroMillions nations, will be introduced as part of the overhaul. European Millionaire Maker will work in the same way as UK Millionaire Maker, but will offer multiple prizes of £1 million or €1 million when it is drawn on different occasions throughout the year.
Mega Friday Becomes Mega Week
UK players are used to having the chance to win one of an increased number of prizes of £1 million and a luxury experience in the last Friday EuroMillions draw of every month, but starting on Tuesday 27th September that will be extended to the final Tuesday draw as well. This means more players will have the opportunity to enjoy the trappings of the millionaire lifestyle without having to dig into their newly-bulging bank account.
A New UK Monthly Bonus Draw
There will be another chance to play for a £1 million prize pot in the UK Monthly Bonus Draw, once it launches. Every ticket played can be entered into the corresponding month’s draw for a shot at the cash on offer. Online players are registered automatically and those who buy physical tickets can enter online for yet another way to win with the new EuroMillions.
Bigger Jackpots, Rolling Faster
The extra 50p per line, combined with a greater proportion of the prize fund being allocated to the EuroMillions jackpot, means that the game’s top prize is expected to grow to a higher value more quickly. The base EuroMillions jackpot will be worth up to £2 million more than its current rate, and average top prizes are expected to be £19 million higher than in 2015, reaching beyond £50 million more often.
The odds of winning the top prize will lengthen from 1 in 116,531,800 to 1 in 139,838,160 with the introduction of the extra Lucky Star, but there will be bigger jackpots to play for and a number of the prizes won across lower tiers will be worth more too.
Better Value and More Chances to Win
No one likes paying more for than they are used to for anything, but the new EuroMillions from September offers plenty in return for the small increase in outlay. The numerous new games, better odds of claiming a seven-figure bounty thanks to both UK and European Millionaire Maker, as well as Mega Week, and the potential for dizzyingly huge jackpots makes EuroMillions tickets extremely good value!