Luck on a lottery ticket
Published in the magazine Ieva, 2023 No. 6 (25)
When preparations for Christmas begin, Lithuanians' thoughts turn to the 12-course dinner,
gifts and the ever-increasing holiday expenses. And the statistical Spaniard first takes care of the Christmas lottery tickets. Why, in a country where more than 3 billion euros are spent on the lottery, is gambling more important than high expenses and other Christmas worries?
Lottery fever The Christmas lottery in Spain, officially known as the Extraordinary Christmas National Lottery, will be held for the 211th time this year. Some Spaniards look forward to the lottery's lucky numbers on December 22nd more than Christmas itself - even those who don't spend money on other lottery tickets all year round take part. The first Christmas lottery took place in 1812 (at the height of the Spanish War of Independence!) and has never been stopped since then (not even during the Spanish Civil War). And since 1957, the Christmas lottery has been broadcast on television. On that December afternoon, when Spaniards watch the lottery from 9 am, there is nothing more important in the country. Life stops until about 1 pm. A tractor driver who starts work early in the morning can leave his huge machinery in the middle of the street, dogs that are walked on the streets all day in Spain understandably wait at home, and in smaller towns, it seems that the streets are deserted -
Everyone is waiting with bated breath to see if their lives will change this year.
According to official statistics, which show that the average Spaniard spends more than 60 euros on the Christmas lottery, it is clear that one lottery ticket, which costs not so little, but all of 20 euros, is not enough for most people. True, Spaniards like to share tickets: family members and friends exchange purchased lottery tickets, buy in half, give them to each other, buy online or stand in the longest lines at ticket kiosks and ask for tickets to be brought from other cities - just to increase the chances of winning the big prize, called the fat man in Spanish. In Spain, even the salary system is favorable for buying the Christmas lottery, because the annual salary is divided into 14 parts. One of them is paid in early December, so for most people it is an opportunity to buy even more lottery tickets. By the way, more and more tickets are being printed - in 2022, 180 million tickets were put up for sale. One lucky lottery ticket can change a life and add around 400 thousand euros to your bank account (there can be up to 10 winners of the grand prize, so one player can win up to 4 million).
The most interesting facts and records
Doña Manolita (doña is a respectful Spanish term for lady) opened a lottery kiosk in the center of Madrid in 1904, which still has the longest queues of people dreaming of winning the lottery. It is this market of Doña Manolita that is known throughout the country as a special place where the most winning tickets have been purchased. The aforementioned lottery ticket sales point has changed locations in the capital, passed down from generation to generation and continues to be one of the most popular places to buy Christmas lottery tickets. Queues at the Christmas lottery are a completely normal phenomenon even in August,
and considering that tickets bought here have won the grand prize 76 times, this is not surprising. A Spanish dream also came true for Neringa from Lithuania in 2017 - after 15 years of living in Spain, she won 400 thousand euros by buying a ticket with the numbers of her eldest daughter's date of birth. The Spaniards were very interested in seeing both the winning combination of numbers and the foreigner who chose it. Lottery ticket sales points usually display ticket series so that it is clear what to choose from, but the combination Neringa requested when choosing a ticket - 71198 - was not even displayed.
A matter of honor One of the most striking things about the lottery numbers being drawn on December 22 is that each five-digit combination drawn is sung by children wearing traditional school uniforms. The thousands of sums can be sung not by just anyone, but by students from the San Ildefonso school in Madrid. This tradition has been going on since 1771, when the first student from the school sang the lottery numbers in the spring lottery. Children
The selection began specifically from the San Ildefonso school, because the latter was previously an orphanage, so no one's consent was needed. Since 1812, when the Christmas lottery began, children have always participated in the drawing of numbers, only girls joined this tradition late - their voices were heard for the first time only in 1984.
For three decades, the San Ildefonso school has been divided into two parts: a boarding school for children from poor families and a public school. Now, most parents dream of their children getting into this school and being able to sing numbers on lottery day. The children are selected from the regular residents of the boarding school and have to overcome a considerable competition. The selections take place in October, and then long rehearsals begin. The children, surrounded by great enthusiasm for
Christmas lottery, the opportunity to appear on national television is one of the biggest dreams. Another thing that makes lottery ticket sellers proud is the opportunity to boast that they have sold tickets that have won large sums. Signs with the lucky number combinations and the year in which they were drawn can be seen in shop windows, printed on large posters or
respectfully framed. It goes without saying that in addition to the favorable evaluation of potential lottery ticket buyers, sellers are also highly motivated by sales. Where lottery tickets win the grand prize, the queues are the longest the following year. And tickets can be found at everything from special lottery kiosks to bars, stationery stores or large companies that buy series of tickets for their employees.
Missed opportunities
I will never forget the strange story I heard in a bar in the city of Castellón while drinking coffee. As I sat with my back to the door, I heard a woman who had just entered the bar order coffee and a chocolate layered bun, preferably the one on the left, where there would probably be more filling. The woman spoke so loudly that the rest of the visitors could hear the whole conversation. While the woman was being prepared for coffee, she continued to talk emotionally to the bar owner:
– Even after 34 years, my story is a great moral. And well, you don't have to miss opportunities in life.
Such stories, with bar legends becoming legends over the years, are often embellished, I'm sure, as the Spanish like to do, but they are true stories. Even if someone had a chance to win decades ago and their dream didn't come true, the heroes of such stories will still find something to be proud of - they were close.
With five months left until Christmas, looking for lottery tickets, imagining what they would do,
Winning the grand prize is one of the most prominent Spanish habits. By the way, everyone's ideal plan is the same - to win a lot of money and not work anymore. And even if everyone understands that most people will not win anything or will win less than they spend on tickets - it is an inspiring tradition of not losing hope, uniting the entire country.