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Spain's El Gordo lottery sparks celebrations across MadridNews Story
Workers at a home for the elderly were among those celebrating Thursday in Madrid, Spain, after all the tickets with the top prize-winning number in Spain's 2.3 billion (US$2.4 billion) Christmas lottery were sold in one city neighborhood. The number 66513 appeared on 1,650 tickets in the lottery known as El Gordo ( The Fat One ), with each ticket holder winning 400,000 (US$418,000). The winning tickets are normally sold in several different lottery offices around the country but this time
Dec 23, 2016, 11:48 am - Lottery News

The legendary luck of this Spanish lottery shop keeps El Gordo players coming backNews Story
Less than two weeks before Christmas, the line to buy a ticket for Spain's biggest lottery at Do a Manolita, which some consider the country's luckiest ticket vendor, was roughly 100 people long on a chilly Tuesday evening. Considering the frenzy that builds as the holiday nears, it was a short wait. Would-be players will stand for up to three hours in a line that snakes along back streets and past storefronts, crowding the capital city's holiday-festooned pathways for a chance to win the mor
Dec 17, 2016, 8:45 am - Lottery News

African migrants win big in Spain Christmas lotteryNews Story
About 35 African migrants, including at least one rescued at sea from an overcrowded wooden boat, are among the top prize winners of Spain's Christmas lottery, according to the owner of the lottery agency that sold more than 1,000 tickets that shelled out 400,000 euros (US$438,000) each. The winners who bought the tickets in the southern coastal city of Roquetas de Mar included migrants from Senegal, Mali and Morocco, agency owner Jose Martin told La Voz de Almeria newspaper in a story publis
Dec 24, 2015, 7:27 am - Lottery News

Beach town hits jackpot in Spain's El Gordo lotteryNews Story
With wide smiles, elated lottery winners popped corks on bottles of sparkling wine Tuesday in the southern beach city of Roquetas de Mar, where tickets bearing the top prize number in Spain's Christmas lottery were sold. The winning number 79140 appeared on 1,600 tickets in the lottery known as El Gordo (The Fat One), with each ticket holder winning 400,000 (US$434,800). The lottery has taken on special importance in recent years as Spain struggled through a real estate bubble and the Euro
Dec 22, 2015, 9:26 am - Lottery News

Disney chooses director for upcoming lottery movieNews Story
By Todd Northrop Annie director Will Gluck is teaming with Walt Disney Studios to direct an untitled lottery movie based on the actual events of a Spanish lottery jackpot win. The project, which was originally written for a male lead and titled Lucky Guy, is being retooled to feature a female protagonist and does not yet have a name. The story centers on a perpetually unlucky young woman who is flabbergasted when everyone in her small town except her wins a lottery. However, this appare
May 29, 2015, 7:07 pm - Lottery News

Spaniards celebrate 'El Gordo' victories in world's biggest lotteryNews Story
Thousands of Spaniards including humble restaurant workers and care home residents celebrated wins in the world's biggest lottery draw on Monday, scooping up shares in over 2.2 billion euros (US$2.7 billion) in prizes doled out across the country. El Gordo, or the Fat One , is the top award millions vie for every year in the traditional Christmas lottery, which had Spaniards on tenterhooks for four hours as the ceremonial draw took longer than usual to throw up the big prizes. The Gordo pa
Dec 22, 2014, 10:24 pm - Lottery News

Spain holds annual Christmas El Gordo lottery drawNews Story
The winners of Spain's cherished Christmas lottery the world's richest celebrated around the country Sunday, a moment of joy and relief after another year of a brutal financial crisis. Millions had been glued to their televisions on Sunday as 2.5 billion euros (US$3.4 billion) in prize money was distributed. The drawing is so popular that most of Spain's 46 million people watched at least part of the live four-hour show, hoping they would hear their ticket as school children called out the lu
Dec 22, 2013, 9:01 pm - Lottery News

El Gordo jackpot brings lottery joy to thousands in SpainNews Story
Spaniards facing yet another year of economic misery found relief in the world's biggest lottery payout on Saturday, the traditional Christmas Gordo, or Fat One, which spread 2.52 billion (US$3.3 billion) in prize money around the country. Champagne corks popped in towns, cities and villages across Spain as tens of thousands of winners took home enough money to keep their families going through the dark days of 2013 and beyond. Yesterday we were both on the dole, but today we are winners,
Dec 24, 2012, 8:33 am - Lottery News

Entire town, except one guy, wins $950M lotteryNews Story
Just a few weeks ago, the 70 households in the isolated farming village of Sodeto were struggling under the double whammy of Spain's economic downturn and the ravages of a severe drought. Some were even thinking of passing up Spain's huge Christmas lottery, known as El Gordo the fat one which is something of a national obsession. But they bought tickets out of loyalty to the homemakers' association here, which makes a small percentage on the sales. And then, their number came in. All bu
Feb 2, 2012, 4:35 pm - Lottery News

Spanish Christmas lottery pays out billionsNews Story
Days before Christmas, a tiny town of 2,000 in cash-strapped Spain found itself richer by 720 million (US$940 million) Thursday after scooping the top prize in the nation's famed Christmas lottery. Billed as the world's richest, the lottery dishes out some 2.52 billion (US$3.29 billion) to winners across the nation. The top prize dubbed El Gordo (The Fat One) was split among the holders of tickets bearing the number 58268. The number appeared on 1,800 tickets, giving winners 400,000 for th
Dec 23, 2011, 12:27 pm - Lottery News