sat 09 jan 2016, 09:16

Great Britain: 80 million, USA: 730 million

Loterijkoorts by recordjackpots

our editors abroad

Amsterdam –

As rich as hitzanger Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees? Or the same income as an entire archipelago in the Pacific Ocean? It would be this Saturday, just two people can happen.

The winning lot? Brian Kenny from Pennsylvania proudly shows his ’lucky numbers’.

Photo:
AP

In both Great Britain and the United States the loterijkoorts to a boiling point. Millions of fortune seekers sit tonight for the tube, lottery ticket firmly in the knuisten. If the balls conveniently fall, then the Uk National Lottery and Us Powerball jackpots of record.

Monies that the grand prizes of the Dutch goededoelenloterijen degrade to a tip: 60 million pounds (80 million euros) from the British, and the Americans an astronomical 800 million dollars (730 million euros). That first amount is already enough to be the lucky winner in the rijkenlijst of the Sunday Times to launch. In addition to Gibb so, that 35th.

The American jackpot is in size equal to the size of the total economy of Samoa, an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean with about 200,000 inhabitants.

It makes the lotenverkopers on both edges of the Atlantic Ocean today megadrukte expect. The National Lottery, whose jackpot should fall and if needed, multiple winners will be divided, thinks that there are between half seven and half eight tonight, if the sale closes, 400 tickets per second (!) over-the-counter will go.

Just before the previous draw, on Wednesday, beat in the computer system of the British lottery the stop by, so busy was it. Twitter users reported on Friday that they have ten minutes in the row had to stand for a lot. Odds: one in 45 million.

10 minutes stood in a queue earlier to buy a lottery ticket at Asda in Winsford. 10 minutes. For a lottery ticket

— Tom Greaves (@greavesey)
January 8, 2016

In the United States is the chance to hit the jackpot on ironing out even less: one in 292 million. But also the Americans seem to find anything to draw. In the run-up to the draw, tonight at eleven o’clock oostkusttijd, the recorddrukte of last Wednesday, when the jackpot of “only” 500 million dollar eventually remained be surpassed.

So expect gas stations where no one comes up, but where people far outside the door to stand in line for a ticket. Or in supermarkets where, according to one manager in the loterijgekke Florida, “95 percent of the people come to a lot to buy”. In the state of Kansas were Wednesday, ten times more tickets sold than normal. Expected revenue today in a state like Virginia? Such a 13.800 tickets per minute, or 230 per second in the last two hours.

And to think that the Powerball winner, if it’s already there, not 800 million wins. Not only does the irs for at least a quarter of the price, also is the jackpot amount, a sum of over thirty years in instalments is paid out.

Choose the winner sure to be the prize in one time to collect – and the most winners do that –, then there’s about half over. Still enough to more than 2000 Maserati’s of to buy. Or nearly 75 million cups of coffee at Starbucks. Or nearly 800,000 trips to Disneyworld with the whole family. Or 26 private aircraft. Or…