Who hasn’t dreamed of winning the Christmas Lottery? Every December, Spaniards immerse themselves in a sea of ??illusions and hopes, with their eyes set on that jackpot that could change anyone’s life. And, if it’s not the first prize, let it touch something. But here’s the dilemma: how to choose the winning number? The possibilities are so many that it seems impossible to get it right.
And this is where the psychology of the bettor comes into play. Each person has their own tactic, their ritual, that little superstition or sign that whispers in their ear: “This is your number.” From Fiesta they wanted to resort to the skills of the psychic and astrologer María Jacaranda to reveal the number that, according to her predictions, could be the winner in the draw.
During her visit to the set, Jacaranda shared an anecdote to show that she was authorized to make these types of predictions. As she said, someone previously won 30,000 euros thanks to her predictions.
Given these supposed divinatory powers, expectation grew throughout the afternoon, with spectators attentive to the rituals suggested by Jacaranda to attract good luck for the Christmas Lottery. Finally, the astrologer ended up revealing the long-awaited number: 72363. This combination can be purchased in Bilbao, Cádiz, Málaga, Torrelavega, Madrid and other locations in Spain.
The big question is: will this combination really play? Most likely not. With a staggering 100,000 numbers up for grabs, from 00000 to 99,999, hitting the top prize involves a minuscule chance of 0.001%, which is equivalent to one in 100,000.
Looking beyond Gordo, the odds improve slightly, although they remain challenging. The second and third prizes, with rewards of 125,000 and 50,000 euros respectively, share the same probability of 0.001%. For the smaller prizes, the possibilities increase a little: 0.002% for the fourth prize of 20,000 euros and 0.008% for the fifth prizes, which award 6,000 euros per tenth.
In total, approximately 15% of the numbers are awarded in some category, from the Gordo to the refund. Although, it should be noted, the majority of these prizes, 10%, are limited to reimbursement, which consists of recovering the cost of the tenth, as long as the final number of the tenth coincides with that of the Gordo. This means that, despite the excitement and hope surrounding the draw, the reality is that there is an 85% chance of not winning anything.
