The U.S. Mega Millions lottery jackpot swelled to $868 million, the second largest in U.S. history, after no winning ticket emerged in Tuesday night’s drawing.
The Mega Millions jackpot rose from $667 million after no one had the six numbers drawn Tuesday, extending a winless streak for the top prize that has lasted since July. The next drawing is Friday night.
The lottery prize is the largest ever for Mega Millions and the country’s second highest on record, trailing a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot paid out in 2016.
Lottery tickets are sold in kiosks, supermarkets and gas stations in 44 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands.
The immediate cash value of the Mega Millions prize is $494.5 million. Otherwise $868 million is paid out over 29 years.
The Mega Millions jackpot has grown with each of the 24 semi-weekly drawings that failed to produce a top winner since July 24, when an 11-member office pool in Santa Clara County, California, hit a $543 million jackpot.
The odds of hitting the jackpot by matching all six numbers correctly are 1-in-302.6 million, but the odds of turning a Mega Millions ticket into a winner of any kind, including a $2 prize simply for matching the “Mega ball,” are a more down-to-earth 1-in-24.
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