Will EuroMillions Be Affected By Brexit?
People are asking if they will still be eligible to win the massive jackpots through EuroMillions after the UK leaves the EU.
Many questions have been raised over how Brexit with affect life in the UK. However, a number of people are asking something slightly different; how will it affect the EuroMillions games?
Concerned lottery players have taken to Twitter to find out how the EuroMillions will work if the UK divorces the EU.
The game has become hugely popular across the country in recent years. A number of British winners have bagged jackpots worth millions of pounds.
Until now it has not been clear if or how the game would change for UK players or if they will even be eligible to play anymore but according to Wales Online, Camelot who run the EuroMillions has said that UK residents will still be able to play following Brexit.
Players do not need to live in a participating EU country to buy a ticket for the lottery.
Switzerland, for example, which is not an EU member, has played EuroMillions since October 2004.
The agreement in place to run the game is between the UK National Lottery and official lottery operators of the eight other participating countries.
Camelot said: “To put it simply, the UK’s participation in EuroMillions is based on geographical location and not affected by government decisions.”
A UK citizen living in Belgium, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain or Switzerland, can still buy tickets as usual. You can buy either online or from shops.
You don’t have to be a citizen of a EuroMillions country to play there, but you must claim your prize in the country in which you bought your ticket. This is good news for millions of hopefuls.
Bad News For EuroMillion Players?
However, this change may affect the size of the jackpots.
Since the EU referendum, jackpots have increased in value for UK players.
Camelot said…
“This is due to the Pound crashing against the euro as a consequence of the uncertainty over the country’s financial future after Brexit.
“As EuroMillions uses the euro as its base rate of currency, jackpots must be converted into pounds and Swiss francs on the night of each draw using the current exchange rates.
“Should the pound be weak in comparison to the euro, the prize on offer to UK ticket holders is worth more than if the pound is strong.”
For example, ahead of the Brexit vote, a €100m jackpot would be worth around £73.2m. But in the days after the referendum result, that same jackpot was worth around £80.8m.
The game picks non-jackpot rewards from a separate prize pool. Each nation’s official lottery provider makes up funds from a slice of ticket money provided.
This money is pooled and divided based on the contribution of players in different currencies.
Should the sterling price of a ticket be worth less than the euro equivalent? The value of prizes in the UK goes down to compensate for the difference.
As the value of both currencies can fluctuate, UK players win bigger non-jackpot prizes when the Pound is stronger.
A Camelot spokesperson said…
“EuroMillions currently operates across nine European countries and EU membership is not a requirement. For example, EuroMillions operates in Switzerland (a non-EU country).
“The EuroMillions agreement is between the lottery operators in the nine countries – not the governments. Camelot is one of the founding members of EuroMillions, along with the French and Spanish lottery operators.
“In addition, EuroMillions currently operates successfully across three different currencies – euros, Swiss Francs and pounds here in the UK.”
