Lottery mathematics Lottery mathematics Lottery mathematics is used to calculate probabilities of winning or losing a lottery game. It is based heavily on combinatorics, particularly the twelvefold way and combinations without replacement. In a typical 6/49 game, each player chooses six distinct numbers from a range of 1-49. If the six numbers on a ticket match the numbers drawn by the lottery, the ticket holder is a jackpot winner—regardless of the order of the numbers. The probability of this happening is 1 in 13,983,816. The chance of winning can be demonstrated as follows: The first number drawn has a 1 in 49
National Lottery (Ireland) with scratchcards, and the flagship drawing game, Lotto, began in March 1988. The National Lottery now operates three families of drawing games (Lotto, EuroMillions, and Daily Million), funds televised bingo and game shows, sells a wide range of scratchcards, and runs a number of Millionaire Raffles each year. National Lottery games are available online as well as through a network of over 3,700 retail agents nationwide. By the end of 2013, the National Lottery had achieved over €12 billion in cumulative sales, had paid out €6.7 billion in prizes, and had raised €4.4 billion for the good causes it supports.