Three people in the UAE kicked off their Eid celebrations with a bang after they scooped Dh77,777 each in the weekly Emirates Draw last Sunday.
Among the lucky winners was an Emirati diplomat, a Filipino nurse, and a South African business owner, Emirates Draw said on Friday.
Filipino nurse Yasser Fuentes said he has not stopped smiling since landing the cash prize.
The 33-year-old Dubai resident started participating regularly in the draw only three weeks ago and said he plans to use the winnings to help support his family back home.
“I still can’t believe that I won because I’ve never won a raffle before," he said.
Lady luck was also on Hassan Al Suwaidi’s side. Mr Al Suwaidi entered the raffle just minutes before submissions closed for the Eid draw.
“I’m still in shock," said Mr Al Suwaidi, 24, who works as a diplomat in Abu Dhabi but is from Dubai. "I’ve replayed the video of the live stream at least five times and read the congratulatory email 15 times so far.
“I had previously won Dh77 but I didn’t expect to win Dh77,777, especially on the evening of Eid," he said.
“My family and friends were very excited when I told them that I had won. My mother said that I was always lucky as a child when participating in raffles and this is proof that I’ve still got it.”
He said he would use his windfall to treat his parents.
Joining her fellow winners, South African business owner Meaza Kebere, 31, had won Dh777 in a previous draw and upgraded to more than 100 times that amount this time around.
Ms Kebere, who runs a cosmetics business with her husband, said she participates in the draw every week.
“We had won Dh777 before so when I checked my email after the draw, I saw that we had won again,” she said.
“I didn’t really think about it until I checked my dashboard and realised how much we had won.”
She said her husband was out walking when she found out the news.
“I kept telling him to come back home and that worried him but when I told him that I had won, he became so happy, and we haven’t stopped celebrating since.”
The couple plan to use their winnings to expand their business.
Emirates Draws are held every Sunday and are live streamed on YouTube and Facebook, with seven lucky participants each winning Dh77,777.
The grand prize remains at Dh100 million until a single person or a group of people match all seven numbers.
People can participate in the weekly draw by buying a Dh50 pencil that will support the planting of corals. After registering online, participants can select their seven-digit number or have the system choose a number randomly.
Abu Dhabi Big Ticket winners describe life after the jackpot: in pictures
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UAE residents who struck lucky with Abu Dhabi's Big Ticket draw attended a gala dinner. Organisers of the draw celebrated the winners' good luck at the Alexandra Dhow Cruise in Dubai Marina. All photos by Leslie Pableo / The National -
Richard Isaac and Bouchra Yamani, the two presenters who pick out the raffle tickets and call the winners, interacted with the winners. Some of attendees had won jackpots of between Dh1 million to Dh15 million, while others won Dh90,000 -
'The National' spoke to winners about how they have spent their grand prize. Shivamurthy Gali Krishnappa won Dh12 million last month. He said he wants to save for his children's future. For now, he is still working as a mechanical engineer for a stainless steel production company -
Shahed Ahmed Moulvifaiz, a Bangladeshi car garage owner in Al Ain, won Dh10 million less than a week ago. He wants to bring his family to the UAE, expand his business and spend on his youngest son's education -
Jayaprakash Mariyan Philip had won the Dh1 million prize with nine other people. The funds were split equally, leaving him with Dh100,000. He said he has paid off part of his bank loans -
Zaheenn Kausar was visiting her husband in Abu Dhabi from Pakistan, when he bought a ticket under her name. She proved lucky for her family after winning Dh90,000. She wants to pay for her daughter's university tuition and buy a car for herself -
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 5,000 people would gather during a live event in Abu Dhabi to watch the draw take place. Since 2020, the draw streams live on social media channels, bringing in even larger crowds -
Many people buy multiple tickets together and then split the prize equally. There are also those who win after buying a ticket alone, allowing them to keep the entire jackpot -
The Abu Dhabi Big Draw has been changing lives since 1992 -
The ticket for the grand prize costs Dh500
