Arkansas Powerball player strikes $1.8bn jackpot on Christmas Eve

A Powerball player in Arkansas won a whopping $1.817bn (£1.34bn) jackpot in a Christmas Eve drawing, making it the second-largest lottery prize ever claimed.

The single winning ticket matched all six numbers - 4, 25, 31, 52, 59 and red Powerball 19 - giving the winner the option of taking a lump-sum cash payment of $834.9m.

This marks only the second time a Powerball jackpot has been won by a ticket sold in Arkansas, according to the lottery operator. Powerball did not identify the winner.

The largest single-ticket prize remains the $2.04bn jackpot won in 2022 by a player in Altadena, California.
In order to win the jackpot, a lottery ticket holder must match all five white balls and the red Powerball selected during a drawing.

Tickets for the lottery cost $2 each - and the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to game organisers.

A winner has an option to choose a lump-sum payment or receive the full amount in an annuity paid over 29 years, but most winners opt for the upfront cash option.

The game, which began in 1992, is played in 45 of the 50 US states, the capital city of Washington, and in the US territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

The winnings are subject to federal taxes of between 24% and 37%, and, in most cases, state taxes.

Source: BBC 

--Agencies