Friday-the-13th Jackpot Hit Only Six Times in Mega Millions Game History
If Friday’s $340 million Mega Millions drawing produces a winner, it could be one for the history books. That’s because it would be only the seventh time in the game’s history that a jackpot was hit on Friday the 13th.
“Wouldn’t it be fun if someone won the Mega Millions jackpot on Friday the 13th?” said Gordon Medenica, Mega Millions Lead Director and Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director. “Who says Friday the 13th has to be an unlucky day? A big Friday win would certainly make it a great day for some lucky player!”
A jackpot winner in this Friday’s drawing would have a choice between the estimated annuity value of $340 million (before taxes), or the estimated lump-sum cash value of $204.8 million (before taxes).
The last Mega Millions jackpot win came in the May 4, 2018 drawing, when a $142 million prize was claimed on a ticket sold in Ohio. There have been 10,121,304 winning tickets sold in the 19 drawings since then, including 20 second-tier winning tickets, each worth at least $1 million.
The largest jackpot in Mega Millions history was $656 million on March 30, 2012, when winning tickets were sold in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland. The largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history was $1.586 billion in a Powerball drawing on Jan. 13, 2016, when winning tickets were sold in California, Florida and Tennessee.
Mega Millions drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 p.m. ET. Tickets are $2 and are sold in 44 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Players can add the Megaplier option for an additional $1, which multiplies all prizes except for the jackpot. For more information, visit megamillions.com.