A single ticket sold in the US state of Arkansas won a prize of US$1.8 billion in Powerball, the United States lottery, after the draw on Wednesday (24) night — one of the biggest lottery prizes in the country’s history.
The prize increased after Monday’s (22) draw had no winners, with last-minute ticket sales increasing the value to US$1.817 billion. That makes it the second-largest US lottery prize of all time and the biggest Powerball prize of 2025, the lottery website reported on Thursday.
The winning numbers — 4, 25, 31, 52, 59 and Powerball 19 — were drawn about an hour before midnight. The chances of hitting the main prize? An impressive one in 292.2 million.
This was the second time Arkansas had a Powerball jackpot winner. The first was in 2010.
Powerball tickets cost $2 each. The lucky winner can choose between receiving annual payments totaling $1.8 billion over 29 years or a one-time payment of approximately $834.9 million before taxes, according to the lottery website.
Just a dream
The Powerball jackpot was previously won on September 6 by two tickets that split a $1.787 billion prize.
Prizes roll over when no one wins, although the odds are much higher for the game’s smaller prizes.
“This is truly an extraordinary, life-changing prize,” said Matt Strawn, president of the Powerball Product Group and CEO of the Iowa Lottery.
The top prize was won once on Christmas Eve in 2011 and four times on Christmas Day.
Across the country, nine secondary prizes of US$1 million were drawn in the final round, on Monday (22).
The biggest American lottery prize of all time was a $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot won in California in 2022.
Big jackpots tend to boost ticket sales, increasing revenue for state lottery funds that finance education and other public spending.
