Emirates Draw has announced the first grand prize winner of 2023 could take home a monumental amount of money.
The first Sunday game, which falls on January 1, holds a spectacular jackpot of Dh200 million ($54.45 million), after a rollover from last week.
The prize was announced by RJ Abhijeet, a popular radio and TV presenter from Radio 4 FM, as being the largest cash prize in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
Tuesday’s 65th episode of Emirates Draw Mega7 yielded 6,385 winners, taking home Dh547,462 in prizes.
One participant matched five out of seven digits to win Dh77,777, eight participants matched four out of seven digits to win Dh7,777 each, and 60 participants matched three out of seven digits to win Dh777 each.
Emirates Draws are held every Sunday and are live-streamed on YouTube and Facebook, with seven lucky participants each winning Dh77,777.
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 numbers or have the system choose them 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
