Svenska Spel reveals decline in major prizes in 2019

Svenska Spel lotteries and scratchcards distributed 255 prizes of SEK1m (£80,867/€94,787/$105,071) or more, a 9.9% decrease from 2018, for combined winnings of SEK 1.28bn (£103.4m/€121.3m/$134.4m)  an 8.5% year-on-year decline.

Pierre Jonsson, winning ambassador at Svenska Spel, said the decline in winnings is largely because 2018 featured two wins of the Drömvinsten (dream win), in which a player matches seven numbers on the Lotto and two on the Joker lottery.

When the Dream Win is achieved, players who match 6 Lotto numbers each win SEK1m, which Jonsson said boosted 2018’s number of millionaires figure by around 50.

Lotteries made up the majority of prizes and winners, generating 144 prizes of SEK1m or more for a combined SEK1.03bn.

The Lotto 1 lottery produced the most prizes of SEK1m or more, with 75, with jackpots coming to a combined SEK257.6m. However, the Euro Jackpot, despite only 19 prizes of at least SEK1m, produced much more prize money among these players, with combined jackpots of SEK647.7m.

The Joker lottery distributed SEK60m among six winners, while Lotto 2 gave out 27.4m worth of prizes worth SEK1m-plus to 19 players. The Andra Chansen (second chance) Lotto gave out SEK15m worth of prizes, each worth SEK1m, to 15 winners, while the Keno lottery gave out 25.5m and created 10 millionaires.

Svenska Spel distributed 111 prizes of SEK1m-plus on scratchards, giving these players combined SEK247.7m worth of prizes.

The Klöver-Triss scratchcard distributed the most winnings, at SEK152.7m, and created the most millionaires, at 50. The Triss scratchard distributed SEK55m among 43 players who won SEK1m or more.

TV-Triss and Skrapspel each created nine millionaires, but TV-Triss distributed a combined SEK31m to these players, whereas Skrapspel distributed SEK9m.

Of these 255 prizes, 150 went to men, 104 to women and one to a syndicate. The average age of all million winners (excluding the one syndicate) in 2019 was 56.2 years. The average age of lottery million winners was 58.1, while for scratchcards it was 53.8.

The Euro Jackpot prizes included SEK562m in a single jackpot, awarded to a couple from Örebro after the 15 March draw. The next largest prize was SEK25.6m on 30 August, also a Euro Jackpot prize. The largest prize from another lottery was SEK21.5m, from Lotto 1 on 30 March.

The largest scratchcard prize was SEK12m from Klöver-Triss, which was won five times.

“It is a nice year of winning that we can now sum up for our number games and lotteries. Last year's jewel in the crown was obviously Sweden's biggest game win of all time,” Jonsson said.