It was the third time lucky for the UAE's national lottery on Saturday as the first Dh1 million prize was awarded.
No player had guessed the seven-figure windfall in the first two rounds of the Lucky Day draw, launched on December 14.
However, the wait for the lucrative Dh1 million ticket is over, with attention now turning to when the Dh100 million jackpot will be won.
Lottery organisers have not yet disclosed the identity of the winner or if they will claim the fortune solely or share it as part of a syndicate.
Striking it lucky
The Lucky Day lottery draw follows a calendar format, with players asked to select six numbers from a possible 31 from a 'day' section of the online draw card and one number from 12 in the 'month' section. Players must register on the official lottery website to participate. There are 43 numbers in total to pick from.
The Dh1 million second prize is on offer for selecting all six 'day' numbers, which this week were 2,6,11,15,27 and 31.
To win the Dh100m top prize, players must correctly pick all day numbers as well as the month number, which was number three in Saturday's live draw.
Thousands win prizes
Five players won Dh100,000 after getting five numbers and the month number. Another 85 players won Dh1,000 for selecting either five day numbers or four day numbers as well as the month number.
In total, 11,270 people won Dh100 – doubling their money on the Dh50 ticket price – which is the prize for selecting the correct 'month' number, even if you do not get any of the 'day' numbers.
The national lottery draw is held every second Saturday and is streamed live at 8.30pm on the UAE Lottery YouTube channel.
Participants must be residents within the UAE who are at least 18. Some independent prize draws allow players to enter if based overseas.
The authorised lottery was the result of a major government drive to overhaul the UAE's commercial gaming sector. The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority was established in September 2023 to shape a “world-leading regulatory framework for a national lottery and commercial gaming”.
Independent lottery operators were directed to pause their activities in January last year, with the GCGRA awarding a licence for the national lottery in July to Game LLC under the banner of the UAE Lottery.
