Consumer Corner: What are the odds of winning the lotto?

You are putting your name in the hat to become a millionaire but what are your chances really?
There’s something exciting about playing the lotto. It’s the possibilities that winning can bring and the idea that money can indeed buy happiness. Who hasn’t laid in bed at night imagining how they would spend €100 million? However, playing the lotto is not free, and it does come with a price.
Each week, there are two n ational lottery draws and two EuroMillions draws. The cheapest price of a EuroMillions lotto ticket is now €2.50, jumping to €3.50 when you add in the ‘plus’ option, which gives you access to additional draws. That’s for one line of numbers. The cheapest national lottery ticket is €4 for two lines, jumping to €6 when you add in ‘plus’.
Doing the maths and playing the minimum amount in each of the four draws every week, with the plus, would cost €76 per month or €912 a year.
Then again, you are putting your name in the hat to become a millionaire but what are your chances really?
Money expert Darragh Cassidy of bonkers.ie said that at the end of the day playing the lotto is a form of gambling.
“It’s a very socially acceptable form of gambling. But it is still gambling. And gambling is never a good investment,” he said.
He added, however, that that’s not to say you should never play the lotto, have the odd 'flutter' on a horse race, or place a bet on the outcome of a soccer game.
“It's extremely rare for people to make any money in the medium to long run from gambling and it can become addictive and absolutely ruin lives. Very, very few people will end up making any money from playing the lotto. So in that sense, for most people, it is a waste of money. But I can see why people still play it. And as long as you don’t overspend it can just be a bit of harmless fun. And of course for the very lucky few, they’ll win big and receive a life-changing amount of money.”
So what are the chances of winning? According to the statistics, the chances of winning the national lottery are one in ten million. The population of Portugal is around 10 million so imagine every person in Portugal was given a ticket to a draw, and you had to hope your ticket is chosen to win.
When it comes to the EuroMillions, the odds are even worse. The odds of winning the top prize in the Euromillions are nearly 140 million to one. With scratch cards, the odds of winning the top prize of €10,000 in a €1 All Cash card is 1.5 million to one.
Despite the low odds of winning, the National Lottery does a lot of good work with the money people pay to play. A lot of the money goes to a fund for good causes such as sports organisations or youth and community work.
The current EuroMillions jackpot is divided into 13 different tiers, and that's where your chances increase. While the potential sum of money to be won is lower, the odds of winning these amounts are higher. Earlier in the year, a syndicate claimed a €30.9 million prize after winning the EuroMillions as a family group.

The national lottery as an organisation ensures that people play the game responsibly and impose an age limit of 18 years. There is also a transaction limit on the number of scratch cards that can be purchased. To avoid the addictive use of the app, there are sanctions on its use, preventing players from engaging with it past a certain time in the evening.
Most financial experts will say that the odd flutter is harmless but do add that if you’re looking to win some quick money, it's probably more prudent to turn your sights on your balls and exercise frugality with your appliances or consider switching providers of broadband and other services.
“Taking a few hours out of your week to switch your home insurance, your electricity, your mobile, your broadband and your mortgage could put hundreds of euro back into your pocket each month,” said Mr Cassidy.
That being said, for the price of a cup of coffee, you could have a few days of dreaming about the “what ifs”. Think about the joy of being a secret millionaire and giving money to those who need it, buying that retirement villa in the south of France or simply, treating yourself to a shopping spree.
When played responsibly, the lottery can be a bit of harmless fun even if the chances really are one in ten million.