Balearics braced for lottery draw

Palma

.—Despite the recession, here in the Balearics, people have spent an average of 70 euros each on tickets for this morning’s El Gordo lottery draw which has 2.24 billion euros to be won, although the maximum any one can win is four million euros if they have bought a strip of ten tickets.

And, for the first time ever, winners of over 2,500 euros will have to pay 20 percent tax. Looking at the figures however, the odds on the jackpot landing in the Balearics are quite slim because the amount spent on tickets is one of the lowest in the country.

The last time the El Gordo landed in the Balearics was here in Majorca in 1995 when 35,000 million pesetas landed in Call d’en Rebassa just outside Palma.

And the last time part of the winning jackpot was won in the region was again in Majorca in Cala Rajada in 2003 but since then, the El Gordo has not been kind to the region and the amount of money spent on lottery tickets has gradually declined and even if the jackpot did land in the Balearics, it appears that most people would carry on working.

Less than four in 10 Spaniards would give up work if they won the Christmas lottery jackpot, according to market research company TNS.

The majority – 96 per cent – said they would use the money to help their family, while 76 percent would travel either long-term or on several holidays, and 73 percent would keep some for the future.

Just over two-thirds said they would use the cash to pay off various debts and create buffer zones in their bank accounts, and 63 per cent would donate some to charity, with women being more inclined to want to do so.

TNS says the El Gordo appears to be a more popular lottery than the El Niño, drawn on January 6 every year, since only half of all Spanish residents say they will by tickets.

Just over four in 10 teenagers and young adults aged 15 to 24 will take part in the El Gordo, compared to 88 per cent of the over-50s.

The El Gordo lottery sees the greatest odds of all the large draws of ticket-purchasers holding a winning number, and although the prize money is substantial to the average person, it is not a ‘life-changing’ amount – it is more likely to be a few thousand than several million, the idea being that with lower prizes, more people get the chance to win something.