Powerball comes to the UK: £311m jackpot and how to play
Powerball, the world's biggest rolling jackpot lottery, launches in the UK this week via The National Lottery. Players can buy £4 lines to chase a shared jackpot currently estimated at £311 million ($544 million), competing with US players. Tickets are on sale ahead of the opening draw on Thursday.
Key Takeaways
- Powerball arrives in the UK through Allwyn's National Lottery, with UK players chasing shared US jackpots from £12m uncapped.
- A line costs £4; pick five numbers from 1–69 plus one Powerball from 1–26.
- The headline jackpot is about £311m ($544m); jackpot odds are roughly 1 in 292 million.
- UK-only extras include an £8 “match two” prize and a fixed £1m for matching five main numbers.
- Draws run from Florida on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; tickets close at 11.55pm the night before.
For more oddball money and culture stories, browse BlasterPost's Bizarre World desk.
How do you play Powerball in the UK?
According to The Independent, players choose five white balls from 1 to 69 and one red Powerball from 1 to 26. Matching all six numbers wins the jackpot.
Each line costs £4. UK players join the same rolling jackpot pool as US players through a tailored National Lottery version run by operator Allwyn.
The UK game adds a “match two main numbers” tier with a fixed £8 prize, available only to UK players. Matching five main numbers pays a fixed £1 million. Other tiers vary with the draw and how many winners share each prize.
What is the current Powerball jackpot and the odds?
The Independent reports the Powerball jackpot at about $544 million (£311 million), with a cash/lump-sum value of $241.6 million. The advertised annuity figure is higher because it assumes investment growth across decades of payments.
Jackpot odds are 1 in 292 million, Allwyn and The Independent note. Powerball has rolled since 1992 and produced a record $2.04 billion (£1.5bn) win in 2022 for Edwin Castro in California.
Allwyn says UK jackpot winners are paid over 30 years. The game's uncapped jackpots start at £12 million.
When can you buy tickets and when are the draws?
Tickets are sold online and in UK National Lottery retailers until 11.55pm the night before each draw. Sales windows cover Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays ahead of draws.
Draws take place around 4am the following morning—on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays—at the Powerball studio in Florida. Allwyn confirmed UK sales ahead of the opening Thursday draw.
Allwyn also says Powerball could raise around £1 billion for UK Good Causes in its first five years, with funding from UK ticket sales going to UK projects.