Mega Millions jackpot soars to $862 million for Friday night's drawing
There's still time to become a mega-millionaire for Christmas, but lady luck will have to be on your side.
No one matched Mega Millions' all six winning numbers last Tuesday, and the jackpot now stands at $862 million ahead of Friday night's drawing.
The jackpot has been rolling since it was last won at $810 million in Texas on Sept. 10.
If there is a sole winner, they have a choice between an annuity, with an initial payment and then 29 annual payments, or a one-time lump sum payment. Most winners choose a cash payout.
For Friday night's drawing, that would be an estimated $392.1 million before taxes.
If won at that level, it would be the largest prize ever won in December and the seventh largest in Mega Millions history.
According to Mega Millions, 13 jackpots have been won during December since the game began in 2002. Three were won in the days after Christmas, while the other 10 were won before Christmas. There has never been a jackpot win on Christmas Day, although over the years drawings have been conducted on Christmas six times - in 2007, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2018 and 2020.
Mega Millions drawings are held on Tuesday and Friday, tickets cost $2. The odds of winning the jackpot are about 1 in 303 million.
