Spain’s Christmas lottery
The Spanish world-famous lottery takes place every December 22 and is the most popular event of the year, giving over €2,400 million in prizes.
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In this game, every number is divided into 10 identical segments, costing €20 each.
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Besides, numbers are divided into series, so there are 1,600 tickets with the same number.
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These tickets can be sold many times and, for that reason, there are often winners in different regions of the country.
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Last year, the winning number —popularly known as El Gordo— was 86148.
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The majority of the tickets were sold in Madrid, but the top prize also reached the Canary Islands and other cities.
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“I haven’t processed it yet. I was in the mountains with the dogs”, said José Manuel Fernández, who had one of the tickets.
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“My wife couldn’t believe it, she began to scream”.
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Spain’s first national Christmas lottery took place on December 18, 1812.
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According to historians, it was first used to buy bullets and make cannons when the French troops were attacking Cádiz.
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This town was the last line of defence against the Napoleonic invasion.
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Although the lottery was created during this event, the attack had already ended when the lottery was celebrated.
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However, the war continued and the lottery extended from Andalusia to the rest of Spain at the same time as the Spanish troops defeated the French.
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In 1814, when the war had almost ended, the main offices coordinating the lottery were transferred from Cádiz to Madrid, the city where they have stayed since then.