Every December 22, officially marks the start of Christmas. The lotteries consulted speak of a significant growth in ticket sales. With these good figures, the challenge of this company, which is 213 years old, now lies in the generational replacement of the client. There are many young people who talk about “a high price for their pockets” and argue that “the 320,000 net euros per tenth of the Gordo are not enough to buy an apartment in the city.”
In recent weeks, lottery acquisition experienced a significant peak with the issuance of the . “It is a powerful reminder, especially for companies,” say different lotteries. There are those that already celebrate a sale “on wheels” like the María del Carmen administration, in La Rioja, where there are long lines. Last year he sold the Gordo with the number 72,480. “We are doing very well, and he has dedicated himself to the purchase,” points out its manager Ignacio Alda. Also in the administration of Las Arenas, in Barcelona, they celebrate the increase. Víctor Fernández, its director, estimates its increase at 47% compared to this same time last year. “We have been without a company lottery for more than a month,” to which 95,000 tenths are allocated.
The most extraordinary Christmas raffle, however, fails to win over the majority of young people. The platform of vending digital Bango DVM reveals “indifference” of this group in the purchase of lottery. The Gen Z Observatory, in a study carried out by the European University and the consulting firm Prodigioso Volcán, summarizes a change in priorities in its consumption for various reasons: lower disposable income, economic uncertainty, price as a critical factor or mandatory presence of the brand on Instagram or Tik Tok. Another Statista report, which evaluates lottery investment from 2015 to 2024, concludes “a significant drop in purchases” and attributes it to the loss of population of the customer who has traditionally invested more in this draw.
What is the reason for this lesser interest among young people? It is enough to go out into the street and ask them to confirm their reasons. The majority point, like Manuel Mendoza, to “one tenth expensive for my salary”; Others, like Gastón Ibarbia, prefer draws in which the jackpot “is much higher.” They admit that “it is more difficult” but “one euro hurts less.” There is no shortage of those who claim to only buy the tenth of the job “because it would bother me if my colleagues won in the lottery and I didn’t,” says Rebeca Herranz Gómez or like Víctor Zuera who does it “more out of commitment than out of excitement and when I don’t play and don’t play I always say 20 euros that I have won.” Others like José Luis Suárez do not buy because “I do not agree that the lottery prize comes from taxes and much less that, if necessary, a part goes to the State.” For her part, Sara Tejido acknowledges “I have other priorities. The salaries are not very large and there are other expenses first.” And she adds with humor “but I am open to being given gifts.” Lucía Molina limits the purchase to a lack of luck: “my parents have always bought and they never get to buy, that’s why I don’t dare.” And Jacobo Niederleytner is blunt: “I don’t buy simply because it is not profitable. For me it is simply an economic issue whose investment yields a negative return.”
The president of Anapal, Borja Muñiz, after 30 years behind the counter of administration number 5 of Gijón, in Asturias, assumes that “the preference of youth has to do with games of immediate gratification”, but is convinced that “the illusion will grow with age.” Something in which Esther de Tudela, from the San Nicolás 60 administration, in Madrid, agrees: “It is difficult to compete with a tenth of six euros and wait six days to see if it comes, with bets of 30 cents, for example, with which they immediately pocket 30 euros.” And he is committed “to renew an obsolete model.” Likewise, Ignacio Alda recognizes that “at that age they are attracted to raffles such as EuroMillions or Primitiva, in which for one euro they can win million-dollar jackpots.” And he considers that winning over this client involves “leaving the prize tax-free and being able to purchase an apartment.”
Solutions
And time has run against this draw. According to Anapal, in 1967 with the El Gordo prize you could buy 10 homes and today it barely buys one, as its latest statistics reveal. Despite everything, Alda confesses himself optimistic: “There will be a generational change, but it will be done slowly.” And Víctor Fernández, from an administration in Barcelona, argues that before attracting the youngest people, it is necessary to influence the promotion and acceptance of responsible gaming regulations. From Ávila, Daniel Collado asks for more support from SELAE “with campaigns that modernize the product for the new generations and transmit this beautiful tradition to them as a vehicle to share and help friends and family, the true engine that moves older customers.” And he reflects: “If there are prizes every day, why shouldn’t it be your turn?”
The Extraordinary Draw of the Christmas Lottery 2025 will distribute 3,960 million euros in prizes, 70 million more than last year. As in every edition, 100,000 numbers will enter the drum. Each Spaniard will spend an average of 76.08 euros compared to 73.84 the previous year. The jackpot prize is four million euros gross for the series, that is, 400,000 euros per ticket played.
