The Euro millions lotto was developed by the Francaise des Jeux in France and the Loterias y Apuestas des Estad in Spain and Camelot in the Uk and was launched on Saturday The 7th of february 2004. The inaugural draw was on on Friday The 13th of february 2004 in Paris. The Uk, France and Spain were participating initially, but lotteries from Austria, Belgium, the Republic of Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Switzerland then signed up to the draw on the 8th of october 2004.

The Euromillions lotto, or the Euro loto as it is frequently known, gathers the stakes of all nine participating European nations presenting a mammoth Euro lotto prize. With the amount of nations joining the EU building, this will clearly lead to new countries participating in the Euro millions lotto. An increase in the amount of people playing the Euro lotto will lead to a continuing growth of the already huge Euromillions lottery prize.

The prize is rolled over each week until it is won giving rise to some substantial winnings. On 3rd february 2006, after rolling over 11 times, the Euro lotto jackpot of £125,194,303 was collected by three ticket holders (two in France and one in Portugal), making it Europe's biggest ever lotto prize.

How to play

Every participant chooses 5 main numbers which can be any number from 1 to 50 and 2 lucky star numbers which can be any number from 1 to 9. During the draw, 5 main and 2 lucky star numbers are then picked at random from two draw machines containing numbered balls. The device containing 50 balls is known as Stresa and the one containing the nine lucky star balls is named Paquerette.

Euro millions prize breakdown

The odds of picking up the Euro lottery top prize is a distant 1 in 76 million but the chances of winning any prize at all are a generous 1 in 24. 16 per cent of the prize pot is given to a "Booster Fund" which can be used to increase the prize pot. The numbers for the estimated prize are only a guide and the true amount alters according to the total in the prize fund and the number of winners for each prize. If the jackpot is not won, it rolls over until the following week. However, if the prize is not won on the twelfth successive week (i.e., eleven rollovers), then the jackpot prize is "rolled down" by distributing it between winners of the next level instead of rolling it forward again.

An exception to this rule would have been on 3 february 2006, which, if the jackpot had not been collected, the prize would have been rolled over for a thirteenth week.

New rules brought in on The 4th of january 2007 and became law on On the 9th of february 2007 restrict the number of consecutive draws to eleven, with the jackpot rolling down to lower prize levels in the eleventh draw if the prize is not won. The new rules also introduced "Event Draws" also referred to as "Superdraws", in which there will be a guarantee of the minimum amount which is available to pay prizes in the Match 5 and 2 Lucky Stars Prize Category; if an Event Draw isn't won it will be rolled down. The first Event Draw took place on february 9, 2007 for €100m (£66m, 165m sfr) to celebrate the Euromillions third birthday.

Notable euro millions wins

On On the 9th of february 2007, a Belgian gentleman collected the Euro millions lotto prize of €100 million ($132 million or £67.9 million) with a ticket purchased in a newspaper shop in Tienen. This is the largest lotto win in Belgium and the second-largest individual win in euromillions history.

By 17 november 2006, after rolling over 11 times, the European lottery prize reached €183 million ($241 million or £124 million pounds). No ticket matched all the winning numbers for the 12th draw, so the jackpot was split among the 20 tickets that matched 5 numbers and 1 lucky star number. Every such ticket was worth €9.6 million ($12.6 million). That is 5% of the jackpot plus the regular match 5 +1 prize. 7 of the 20 tickets were purchased in the United Kingdom, 4 in France, 3 each in Portugal and Spain, 2 in the Republic of Ireland, and 1 in Belgium.

On 31 march 2006, after rolling over 6 times, the European lotto prize of €75,753,123 ($100,175,909) was won by one Belgian gentleman, the second biggest win ever in Belgium, and the third-biggest prize won by an individual.

On the 3rd of february 2006, after rolling over 11 times, the Euromillions lotto prize of €180 million ($238 million) was collected by three ticket holders, two in France and one in Portugal. The three winners won €60 million ($79 million) every.

On 31 july 2005, after rolling over 9 times, the European lotto prize of €115 million ($152 million) was won on a ticket bought in Garryowen, Limerick, Ireland. The lucky ticket holder was Dolores McNamara, mother of six; she is still the biggest single winner in Euromillions history. She claimed the prize on the 4th of august at the Irish National loto's headquarters in Dublin.