Irish Lotto Goes Head-To-Head With The Euro Lotto Elite

How Does The Irish Lotto Fair Against The Euro Lotto Giants?

Just how does the Irish Lotto stack up against its Euro Lotto rivals? Let's make no mistake, Europe boasts some of the wolrd's biggest lottery games in the world. Going toe-to-toe with Euro Lotto giants such as the Euro Jackpot, SuperEna Lotto and the German Lotto is no easy feat. However, the Irish Lotto has the backing of the continent's lottery titan in the Euromillions.

So let's have a look at what the Irish Lotto has to compete with. We'll have a look at the history of its competitors as well as its biggest ever wins.

The German Lotto

The German Lotto takes a no frills, minimalistic approach to the lottery. First played in 1955, ironed out and renamed, the “German Lotto” in 1974, the game has since more than exceeded German expectations and is famous for its colossal pay-outs.

The biggest jackpot win ever recorded in the history of the German Lotto was a colossal €45,382,458 which was won in December 2007 by three lucky ticket holders. However, the biggest ever prize won by a player came in October 2006 when an individual won an astounding €37,688,292!

The SuperEna Lotto

Italy has a great many loves, but the SuperEna Lotto stands head and shoulders above any other when it comes to lottery games. First established in the 1950’s as the “EnaLotto”, it was later rebranded as the SuperEna Lotto. The game is now revered and respected the world over and in October 2010, it made Italian history by producing a massive €177 million jackpot.

In October 2010, one lucky SuperEnaLotto syndicate emerged victorious after an eight-month long rollover, eventually cashing in on sizable €177 million - although the syndicate consisted of 70 members.The biggest SuperEnaLotto jackpot winner by far, by sheer virtue of solidarity, came just one year before when one player claimed ownership of the lucky ticket. The value of the ticket was €147 million!

The Eurojackpot

EuroJackpot was first established in 2011, and played later that same year. Loosely based on the EuroMillions concept, the method for playing on EuroJackpot was almost identical, making it a natural progression for serious players wanting to make the transition. The lottery is designed to give more players the chance to win, and jackpots are won far more frequently and you are nearly twice as likely to win.

The Eurojackpot is not likely to regularly match the world's biggest lottery jackpots, but there is a clear and distinct strategy behind this. The game is specifically made to pay out much more frequently than that of its greatest rivals, making it a true global giant in its own right!A set jackpot cap of €90 million for the Eurojackpot means that the jackpot will not extend beyond this value, however, one particular draw has famously managed to match that cap on 15th May 2015 when one incredibly lucky winner from the Czech Republic was the sole winner of the €90 million jackpot!

The Irish Lotto

The Irish Lotto was created when the Republic of Ireland government first passed the National Lottery Act, 1986. The idea was to help fund some of the country's most noble causes, including national welfare, national heritage, the arts as well as sports and recreation. The National Lottery gaiming operations started making headway in 1987. Obviously at the time, the game was only played on scratch cards.

However, the Irish Lotto started making real strides to becoming a serious Euro Lotto contender in every sense of the word. The catylist was the introduction of not only the Lotto and the Daily Million, but the Euromillions too. Since its official relaunch in 2004 which included the Euromillions, the Irish Lotto has produced a staggering figure of nine Irish Euromillions jackpot winners.

By the time 2008 rolled in, the Irish Lotto already had two Irish winners in the space of just one year. The first of them was an Irish couple who won €15 million in July, followed by a family syndicate who took home €29.4 million in June 2009.

Fast forward to 2013, and the Irish Lotto was making regular millionaires, producing some of the world's biggest jackpots. Two winners each took home €94 million in cash prizes after their share of a much larger sum of €188 million. Each player was immediately entered into the richest 100 Irish millionaires club.

However, the biggest jackpot winner in its history is undoubtedly also the Irish Euromillions' very first winner in 2005 - barely one year after its official introduction. That winner was Dolores McNamara who managed to match all of the numbers which earned her the unbelievable amount of €115 million. Although the game has produced bigger jackpots, she remains the Irish Lotto's single biggest winner. McNamara became the very first Irish player to be included into the country's top 100 richest people list.

The Irish Lotto's Biggest Jackpot Wins