Winning numbers announced during event that lasted four hours

By Kate Northrop

MADRID, Spain — Millions of households have been tuning in to watch El Gordo (The Fat One), the world-famous lottery that doles out over two billion in prizes every year.

This year, the lottery is distributing a whopping €2.6 billion (US$2.86 billion) in prizes to winners across the country. It's not uncommon to see people rushing out into the street and erupting in celebration as the event progresses, perhaps popping a bottle of champagne or two.

Hundreds of lucky ticket holders in Spain have received the gift of a lifetime before Christmas has even occurred, and many are entering the New Year in bright spirits. Those holding tickets containing the numbers 88008 each won €400,000 (US$440,796), the largest possible prize to be won in El Gordo this year.

The El Gordo drawing always takes place on Dec. 22 and lasted about four hours. As is tradition, the numbers are sung by children attending the San Ildefonso School in Madrid when they are drawn. They sing out the winning digits as well as the corresponding prize amounts at the Teatro Real opera house.

In Spain's Christmas lottery, every €200 ticket has one raffle number that can either be purchased in full, or be divided into 10 identical segments called "décimos," costing €20 each. Because numbers are also divided into series, there are in fact 180 full tickets with the same number sold at lottery sales points across the country, making it impossible for one person to buy them all. The odds of winning the top prize are 1 in 100,000.

This year's highest prize of €400,000 is worth about €325,000 per décimo (US$358,146) after taxes. Many people buy décimos of several different ticket numbers to increase their chances of winning a prize. A €200 full ticket pays out €4 million before taxes.

The second prize of €125,000 (US$137,618), or €1.25 million for a full ticket, was won by the number 58303. The lottery awarded additional prizes of lesser amounts as well.

The draw had to be stopped two separate times during the procedure as a result of a mechanical error in the drum containing the numbered balls. The handle that allows the balls to exit the drum became loose, so the operator had to tighten it with a screwdriver.

According to the state lottery firm that runs the drawing, Spaniards spent an average of $67.11 (US$74) on tickets last year.

Spain's first national Christmas lottery took place on December 18, 1812. Historians say it was first conceived to buy bullets and make cannons to fight the French troops attacking the Andalusian city of Cádiz, which was Spain's last line of defense against the Napoleonic invasion in 1812.

Although the lottery was created during the siege of Cádiz, by the time the lottery was celebrated the siege had already ended, having lasted from February 5, 1810 to August 25, 1812.

The war, however, was still raging, and the lottery spread from Andalusia to the rest of Spain as the Spanish troops defeated the French. In 1814, when the war was nearly over, the lottery headquarters moved from Cádiz to Madrid, and it has remained in the capital ever since.