About the Florida Lottery (2024)

2010

Apr 12
The Florida Lottery opens its new Draw Studio, located at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee, FL. The new Draw Studio is home to the FLORIDA LOTTO®, MEGA MONEY™, FANTASY 5™, PLAY 4™ and CASH 3™ game drawings.

Aug 03
The professional football-themed Scratch-Off games, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS, DOLPHINS and JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS, go on sale. The partnership with these Florida professional football teams is the first of its kind in Florida Lottery history and is the first time a lottery offers games for three state pro football teams at one time.

Aug 23
The 1-OFF™ play style is introduced to CASH 3™, allowing players to miss their numbers by one and still have 26 more chances to win.

Oct 11
The Florida Lottery launches LUCKY LINES™, an instant-win game that offers players the opportunity to win big jackpot prizes without having to wait for a drawing. LUCKY LINES sales ended on May 14, 2013.

2011

Jan 11
The NBA-themed Scratch-Off games, MIAMI HEAT and ORLANDO MAGIC, go on sale, offering cash prizes of up to $100,000 and an opportunity to enter non-winning tickets in second chance drawings for a chance to win prizes ranging from VIP experiences to playoff fly away trips.

Feb 02
Governor Rick Scott appoints Cynthia F. O'Connell as the sixth secretary of the Florida Lottery.

Mar 21
The Florida Lottery launches a new $10 limited-time game, LUCKY 7 RAFFLE™, which offers the best odds ever to win $700,000 and awards more than 777 cash prizes on May 5, 2011. In addition, the first 100,000 LUCKY 7 RAFFLE tickets sold come with a free FLORIDA LOTTO® Quick Pick ticket good for the next available FLORIDA LOTTO drawing.

Dec 24
A $50 million FLORIDA LOTTO® jackpot is won, marking the 1,000th jackpot-winning ticket in the game's history. The ticket was claimed by Richard McMullen, of Tallahassee. The retailer who sold the winning ticket, Circle K, in Tallahassee, received a $150,000 bonus commission.

2012

Jan 04
POWERBALL® drawings move from Universal Studios Orlando to the Florida Lottery Draw Studio at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee.

Jan 15
Improvements are made to the multi-state game POWERBALL®, which include bigger starting jackpots, better overall odds and more millionaires. In order to offer these improvements, POWERBALL tickets now cost $2 per play.

Apr 20
Governor Rick Scott signs HB 843 granting the Lottery the ability to utilize Full Service Vending Machine (FSVM) technology. The 2012 Legislative Budget included an appropriation for an initial 350 FSVM's to be distributed across the state.

Aug 28
FANTASY 5™ numbers 01-03-05-07-09 produce 98 top prize winners, setting a new record for the most top prize winners in a single draw since the game matrix changed to 5 of 36 in July 2001.

Nov 28
The Florida Lottery breaks the all-time sales records for daily, weekly and November sales, as a result of the $587.5 million POWERBALL® jackpot, the highest in history.

2013

Jan 07
The Lottery kicks off the week of its 25th anniversary by unveiling a re-branded, re-imagined Florida Lottery that includes a new logo, a new website and a renewed commitment to raising revenue for education.

Jan 08
The Florida Lottery partners with the Florida Department of State, VISIT FLORIDA and the University of West Florida to commemorate Florida's 500th anniversary by launching a new $3 Scratch-Off game, FLORIDA TREASURE HUNT.

Mar 25
The Florida Lottery announces a new milestone of $25 billion in contributions to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund in 25 years.

May 15
The Florida Lottery launches the multi-state game, MEGA MILLIONS®.

May 18
Gloria C. McKenzie, of Zephyrhills, wins the $590.5 million POWERBALL® jackpot, the largest POWERBALL jackpot in history and the largest jackpot ever paid to a sole winner at that time.

Jun 30
Fiscal year 2012-13 ends with sales of $5 billion, making it the highest sales year in Florida Lottery history. As a result, a record $1.4 billion in revenue was transferred to education.

Sep 09
JACKPOT COMBO is introduced, offering players the convenience of playing all three big jackpot games in a single transaction. JACKPOT COMBO players receive one $2 POWERBALL®, one $2 FLORIDA LOTTO® with XTRA and one $1 MEGA MILLIONS® Quick Pick ticket for the next available draw date.

Oct 19
Enhancements are made to the multi-state jackpot game, MEGA MILLIONS, which include bigger starting jackpots that grow faster, better overall odds and more opportunities to become a millionaire.

2014

Jan 19
POWERBALL® brings back the multiplier, offering Power Play® players who match 5 numbers a $2 million prize and multiplying all other non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, 4 or 5 times.

Mar 14
Cobie and Seamus Trust Dated April 21, 2014 became the first MEGA MILLIONS jackpot winners in Florida. The winners split the $414 million jackpot with one other winner in Maryland.

July 2
The Florida Lottery launches the LUCKY MONEY™ with EZmatch™ Draw game. LUCKY MONEY™ replaced the MEGA MONEY game that ended on July 1, 2014.

2015

Mar 16
The 1-OFF™ play style is introduced to PLAY 4™, allowing players to miss their numbers by one and still have 81 more chances to win.

Apr 17
The midday PLAY 4™ winning numbers, 1-1-1-1, produce the highest payout for a single PLAY 4 draw, a record $5,005,025.

Jun 30
Fiscal year 2014-15 ends with sales of $5.58 billion and $1.5 billion generated for education, marking the fourth consecutive year of record sales.

Oct 04
Changes are made to POWERBALL® that include better overall odds of winning any prize, an increased third prize of $50,000 and a 10X multiplier being added to the 2X, 3X, 4X and 5X Power Play multiplier numbers available when the advertised jackpot is $150 million or less.

Nov 23
Governor Rick Scott appoints Tom Delacenserie as the seventh secretary of the Florida Lottery.

2016

Jan 13
A Florida ticket was one of three nationally to win the world-record $1.58 billion POWERBALL® jackpot. The jackpot prize was claimed by The Nickel 95 Trust. This jackpot rollover series generated more than $114.6 million for Florida's students and schools and created 18 new Florida millionaires.

Jun 30
Fiscal year 2015-16 ends with sales of over $6 billion and $1.6 billion generated for education, leading to a total of $30 billion in transfers to education since 1988. This marked a fifth consecutive record breaking year for the Florida Lottery.

Aug 01
The Florida Lottery introduces two new Draw games, PICK 2™ and PICK 5™. CASH 3™ and PLAY 4™ are rebranded to PICK 3™ and PICK 4™ to complete the daily game product line.

2017

Feb 17
The Florida Lottery joins the multi-state, CASH4LIFE Draw game, offering prizes of $1,000 a Day for life and $1,000 a Week for life, to complement the current product mix.

Apr 3
The 1-OFF® play style is introduced to PICK 2™ and PICK 5™ , now players can be 1-OFF any of the Pick game winning numbers and have 356 more chances to win.

Jul 10
Governor Rick Scott appoints Jim Poppell as the eighth secretary of the Florida Lottery.

Sep 01
The Florida Lottery launches the instant-win game Fast Play.

Oct 28
Changes are made to MEGA MILLIONS® that include jackpots starting at $40 million; improved overall odds of winning $1 million; an increased third prize of $10,000; and a new matrix of 70 white ball numbers to choose from and 25 Mega Ball numbers. Tickets increase to $2 per play.

JACKPOT COMBO players receive one $2 POWERBALL®, one $2 FLORIDA LOTTO® with XTRA and one $2 MEGA MILLIONS® Quick Pick ticket for the next available draw date.

2018

Jan 1
The Florida Lottery begins selling FLORIDA LOTTO® with EZmatch™ tickets, allowing players to win up to $500 instantly.

Jan 5
Shane Missler, 20, of Port Richey, wins the $451 million MEGA MILLIONS® jackpot, becoming Florida's second MEGA MILLIONS jackpot winner and the 4th largest jackpot winner in MEGA MILLIONS history.

Jan 12
The Florida Lottery celebrates its 30th anniversary by hosting a reception at Headquarters attended by employees, retailers and past secretaries. Featured speakers included a current Bright Futures student, past and present Leon County Teachers of the Year, and the Lottery's first Secretary, Rebecca Hargrove.

Jun 30
The Lottery continues to celebrate 30 years with more than $6.7 billion in annual sales, for fiscal year 2017-18; the highest in Florida Lottery history. As a result, a record $1.7 billion in revenue was contributed to education.

Aug 05
Evening draw times for the PICK Daily Games™ moves from 7:57 P.M. to 9:45 P.M. E.T.

2019

Jan 29
LUCKY MONEY™ Draw game ended.

Jan 30
The Florida Lottery launches the JACKPOT TRIPLE PLAY with Combo™ Draw game.

July 1

Drawings for CASH4LIFE® move from Monday and Thursday nights to daily drawings.

Nov 15
Governor Ron DeSantis appoints Randall Hunt as the ninth secretary of the Florida Lottery.

About the Florida Lottery (2024)

FAQs

About the Florida Lottery? ›

(a) The FLORIDA LOTTO Base Game is a Draw lottery game in which players select six (6) numbers from a field of one (1) to fifty-three (53). Additionally, a Multiplier of 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X or 10X is chosen randomly by the terminal at the time of ticket purchase and shall apply to all FLORIDA LOTTO Base Game plays.

How does the Florida Lottery work? ›

(a) The FLORIDA LOTTO Base Game is a Draw lottery game in which players select six (6) numbers from a field of one (1) to fifty-three (53). Additionally, a Multiplier of 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X or 10X is chosen randomly by the terminal at the time of ticket purchase and shall apply to all FLORIDA LOTTO Base Game plays.

Who benefits from the Florida Lottery? ›

Lottery Revenue Distribution

The Bright Futures Scholarship Program is always funded first. The remaining funds are distributed among public school districts, community colleges and the Division of Colleges and Universities.

How much do you win for 3 numbers on FLORIDA LOTTO? ›

FLORIDA LOTTO
Matching NumbersOddsBase Prize
5-of-651∶81,409.50$3,000
4-of-641∶1,415.82$50
3-of-631∶70.79$5
2-of-621∶8.58Free Ticket
2 more rows

How do you win the Florida Lottery? ›

If your six numbers match the six winning numbers drawn in the official drawing for the date played, you win a FLORIDA LOTTO jackpot. Match three, four or five of the winning numbers to win other cash prizes. The XTRA multiplier number is selected at random, from 2 through 5, before each drawing.

Can I remain anonymous if I win the lottery in Florida? ›

Florida only allows those who win $250,000 or more to be exempt from public disclosure for 90 days. After that, state law requires the winner's name, city of residence, game played, and date and amount won to be provided “to any third party who requests the information.”

How much tax do you pay on lottery in Florida? ›

Tax Information

If you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien with a social security number, the IRS requires the Florida Lottery to withhold 24% federal withholding tax on prizes over $5,000.

Does 2 numbers win anything in FLORIDA LOTTO? ›

If the player matches just two winning numbers, he/she wins a free FLORIDA LOTTO ticket for the next available draw. Players may choose to receive their portion of the FLORIDA LOTTO jackpots in a one-time Cash Option payment or in 30 annual payments.

Can you win Florida Pick 3 with 2 numbers? ›

5. “Front Pair” play. A front pair play allows a player to select only two digits and pays $25.00 for a 50-cent play or $50.00 for a $1.00 play if the two digits as printed on the player's ticket match, in exact order, the first two numbers of the official PICK 3winning numbers for the drawing. 6.

How to win pick 5 in Florida Lottery? ›

In a straight play, if a player's digits as printed on the player's ticket match, in exact order, the official PICK 5 winning numbers for the drawing, the player wins $25,000 for a 50-cent play or $50,000 for a $1.00 play.

What is the best Florida Lottery to win? ›

GOLD RUSH LIMITED

Yep, if you want the best odds of any Florida Lottery ticket, reach for the $20 GRL. The overall odds of winning something on this ticket is 1:2.65. This game has been out quite awhile, since September 20th of 2021, so I'm sure you've seen it before. But have you played it?

How to win the lottery fast? ›

To better your chances of winning any lottery, you have to buy more tickets, he said. The more tickets, the more chances of choosing the right combination of numbers. But Kapoor is cautious about describing that as improving your odds.

What is the most won lottery in Florida? ›

$1.58 billion, Mega Millions

1. Saltine Holdings LLC from Miami claimed the sole winning ticket in a Publix in Neptune Beach and won the largest Mega Millions jackpot in the game's history on Aug. 8, 2023, an estimated $1.58 billion.

Which Florida Lottery game has the best odds of winning? ›

Which Florida Lottery Games Have the Best Odds?
GameOverall Odds of WinningTop Prize
Fantasy 51 in 7.58$100,000
Florida Lotto1 in 7.61Starts at $1 million
Cash4Life1 in 8$1,000 a day for life
Jackpot Triple Play1 in 15.24$250,000
2 more rows

How do I know if my Florida Lottery ticket is a winner? ›

Scan your ticket: You can check to see if your ticket is a winner by using the self-serve ticket scanners at any authorized Florida Lottery retailer or by using the Lottery's free mobile app for iOS and Android users.

How many numbers do you need to win anything on Mega Millions? ›

How many balls do I need to match for Mega Millions prize? You can win $2 for the matching just one - the Mega Ball. Short of the jackpot, you can win up to $1 million for matching all five white balls (except in California).

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