Brazil’s biggest and most popular lottery is the Mega Sena. Taking place every Wednesday and Saturday, it is a lottery which everybody looks forward to. The most remarkable thing about Brazil’s Mega Sena is that it offers some of the biggest lottery jackpots in South America, and even its secondary prizes are well worth winning.
The Mega Sena first appeared in 1961, so it is one of the oldest ongoing lottery competitions in the world. It has also remained unchanged over that time. Once per year, there is an annual Mega da Virada draw (super draw), which players from across the world flock to.
There have been some pretty big-money prizes paid out with the Mega Sena over the years. The currently record stands at roughly R$64.9 million (which is about $35 million to you and me), won by a player in 1999.
How to play the Mega Sena
Mega Sena is played with the player picking a total of 6 numbers, from a list of 60 in all. There is a unique twist to the Mega Sena draw, though. The drawn numbers are actually picked from two separate drums. The first contains numbers 0 to 5, and the second contains numbers 0 to 9. One ball from each drum is selected to create a winning ball. For instance, if a 0 is drawn from drum 1 and a 7 is drawn from drum 2, the drawn ball is 7. Should the first drum reveal a 2 and the second drum reveal an 8, then the winning number is 28. If a zero is drawn from both pots (double zero, or 00), the number is replaced by 60.
Prizes
There are three main prizes available to be won in the Mega Sena. The lowest possible prize is awarded when a player has 4 winning numbers. This prize consists of roughly R$650. Should a player land 5 winning numbers, then they can win a prize worth as much as R$8,500.
However, if the player matches all six winning numbers, then they will walk away with the jackpot. The jackpot has a tendency to pay out around the R$16.5 million mark.
Lotto Atlas recommends playing the Mega Sena on The Lotter
If you’re thinking of giving Brazil’s Mega Sena lottery a go, but don’t live in Brazil, you needn’t worry. The Mega Sena is one of several top lotteries which can be played on The Lotter. Lotto Atlas recommends The Lotter for all you’re online lottery needs.
The Lotter allows players to purchase tickets to the Mega Sena, whenever they live. You can purchase three-line tickets, or randomly selected number tickets (Quick Pick), all for a cost which is only slightly more than purchasing the actual tickets in Brazil.
And finally…
The Mega Sena has a truly massive jackpot, which can be won week in, week out. As South America’s leading lottery, players have a 1:154,518 chance of winning one of this lottery’s top prizes. Mega Sena does more than most lotteries, in terms of using lottery money to give back to the players, with the jackpot consisting of 35% of the proceeds. 19% of the cash is then reserved for players who match 5 numbers, and another 19% is offered to players who match 4 numbers.