The €250 Million EuroMillions Jackpot Cap Explained
The EuroMillions jackpot can roll over until it reaches a maximum of €250 Million. When it reaches that amount the top prize is capped, which also changes how certain other prizes are calculated. Learn everything you need to know about the EuroMillions jackpot cap and how it works.
How the Jackpot Cap Works
The EuroMillions jackpot starts at €17 million (around £15 million) and if it is not won the prize money increases for the next draw. This is known as a rollover. The increase in the jackpot’s value can vary between draws, as it is partly based on the number of tickets sold.
The jackpot will roll over until at least one player matches all five main numbers plus both Lucky Stars, or it reaches its €250 Million maximum jackpot. After reaching the cap, a maximum of four more draws can go by before the jackpot must be awarded. For these draws, any additional prize money that would usually have gone towards the jackpot is instead allocated to the Match 5+1 tier below it.
In the fifth draw after the jackpot cap is reached, the prize money is guaranteed to be given away in what is called a ‘Must Be Won’ draw. If no players match all seven numbers to win it, the money rolls down to the next winning tier. This means that in this fifth draw, players who match five numbers plus a Lucky Star, or even those who match just five numbers, could get a share of the €250 Million.
- The jackpot cap is currently set at €250 Million
- After the cap is hit, further funds from ticket sales go to the Match 5+1 prize
- The jackpot must be won if it remains at its cap for five draws
The steps below summarise what happens in the draws following the activation of the EuroMillions cap. Select a step to view more details about what happens at that stage in the process.
The jackpot hits the €250 Million cap. Any funds that would usually go towards topping up the jackpot are instead shared by players in the next winning tier.
The €250 Million jackpot doesn’t get bigger, as it would if it rolled over before hitting the cap. Extra funds are again diverted to a lower prize tier.
Proceeds as per draw two. At this point there will likely be many winners in the 5+1 prize tier, but the prize money will also be much higher than usual.
This is the penultimate draw at the cap. If the jackpot doesn’t get won in this draw a Must Be Won draw will take place in the next one.
This is a ‘Must Be Won’ draw. If any players match five numbers plus both Lucky Stars, they will win the jackpot as normal, but if no one manages that, the entire €250 Million prize will be shared by the winners in the next tier below.
The jackpot resets to its €17 million (£15 million) starting value and the next rollover series begins. The jackpot cap had previously been raised by €10 million after each win, but it is now set at its final value of €250 million.
Must Be Won Draws
Must Be Won draws guarantee that a jackpot will be given away, regardless of whether anyone matches all five numbers and two Lucky Stars. If any players do manage that in a Must Be Won draw, they will win the jackpot as normal. If that doesn't happen, the players in the 'Match 5+1' tier will share the jackpot instead. If there are no winners in either of the top two prize tiers, the money will be shared by winners in the 'Match 5' tier, and so on until the jackpot is awarded.
- 8th October 2019 - The top prize rolled over all the way from its starting value to €190 million (the jackpot cap at the time) and remained there for the next five draws.
- 17th November 2006 - The jackpot rolled down for the first – and so far only – time as there were no Match 5 + 2 winners. Instead, 20 ticket holders each won £6.7 million (€9.6 million) after matching five main numbers and one Lucky Star.
- 3rd February 2006 - After 11 draws without a winner, the jackpot had to be won. Three players – two from France and one from Portugal - matched all the numbers to share €183 million.
Jackpot Cap Increases
The jackpot cap was set at €190 million until February 2020, when it was increased to €200 million. Rules implemented at this time allowed the cap to increase more frequently.
It was decided that every time the jackpot cap was reached and the prize money won, it would trigger another change to the cap and another €10 million would be added to the maximum possible jackpot.
This has now happened every time the cap has been hit, until the most recent big win of €240 million in December 2023. It has now reached €250 million and will remain locked at that level even after future wins at the cap.
The EuroMillions partners reserve the right to change the jackpot cap at any time.
How the Jackpot Cap Works
The jackpot rolls over until it hits the €250 million cap
It stays at that amount until it is won or it rolls down in a Must Be Won draw
The jackpot resets to €17 million, but this time the cap stays at €250 million
The €250 million cap makes EuroMillions the biggest lottery in Europe. The following table shows how it compares to some other national and transnational lotteries. Only Italy’s SuperEnalotto has topped EuroMillions, but that takes over a year of rollovers!
| Lottery | Jackpot cap | Biggest ever jackpot | Rollovers to reach that amount |
Odds of winning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EuroMillions | €250 million | €240 million | 2* | 1 in 139,838,160 |
| SuperEnalotto | Uncapped | €371 million (+€141m) |
271 (+261) |
1 in 622,614,630 (+482M) |
| Eurojackpot | €120 million | €120 million (-€110m) |
15 (+7) |
1 in 139,838.160 (-) |
| UK Lotto | Five rollovers | £66 million (-£297m) |
15 (+5) |
1 in 45,057,474 (-94M) |
| Irish Lotto | €19 million | €19 Million (-€211m) |
63 (+53) |
1 in 10,737,573 (-129M) |
| *In this instance a Superdraw bumped the jackpot up to €200 million a week earlier, which meant it only took two rollovers to reach the cap amount. On average it takes 14 draws to reach the cap. | ||||