2023 starts with 5 new millionaires: Mega da Virada is split among 5 winners

The new year has begun and 5 players are already celebrating as new millionaires: the special Mega-Sena da Virada draw, held every year in Brazil on December 31, divided the final prize of R$ 541 million among 5 lucky winners, who each won a total of R$ 108,393,993.26 (the equivalent of approximately US$ 20 million).

The winning combination corresponded to the numbers 04-05-10-34-58-59. One of the novelties is that, although 4 of the 5 winners had bought their numbers in the cities of Florestal (MG), Arroio do Sal (RS), Santos (SP) and São José da Bela Vista (SP), the 5th winner had bought his bet through the internet, although his origin is not yet known.

But, in addition to the top prize (Sena), there were a total of 2,485 winners of the second prize with five correct numbers (Quina) who won R$ 45,438.78 each, as well as 183,921 winners of the third prize with four correct numbers (Quadra) who won R$ 877.04 each.

The winning numbers

The combination of the tens 04-05-10-34-58-59 was the protagonist of the night by winning the jackpot. If we look at the history of all draws, we can see that the numbers 04, 05, 10 and 34 are on the podium of the numbers that have won the Mega-Sena lottery the most times. Particularly, number 10 (293 wins) is in second place after number 53 (294 wins) and number 05 in third place with 282 wins:

• Number 04: 273 times winner
• Number 05: 282 times winner
• Number 10: 293 times winner
• Number 34: 269 times winner
• Number 58: 247 times winner
• Number 59: 244 times winner

In the entire history of the Mega-Sena draw, the number that has won the least amount of times is number 26, with only 211 wins. It would seem that the streak of the favorite numbers as the most winning numbers in this last drawing is once again being fulfilled.

The winners of the draw

At the moment, it is still unknown who are the lucky winners of the raffle, who for the moment remain anonymous. However, in towns like Florestal (MG) or San José da Bela Vista, of only 7.6 thousand inhabitants, where it is known that two of the winning tickets were purchased, it will surely be difficult to remain anonymous for long. In the case of the winner from San José da Bela Vista for example, it is estimated that the prize of R$ 108,393,993.26 is even larger than the entire municipal budget approved for his town for the whole of 2023.

For the moment, the winners can still keep calm, since Loterias Caixa, the body in charge of all Mega-Sena draws, provides for a period of up to 90 days after the drawing to claim and withdraw the prize, which applies to both the ordinary Mega-Sena draws and the Mega da Virada special.

But what happens if the prize is not claimed after this period? First of all, it is important to clarify that if any of the 5 winners do not claim their share of the prize, it will not be distributed among the rest of the winners. The custom for all Mega-Sena raffles is that, if the prize or a part of it is left vacant, it will be destined to the FIES (Student Financing Fund), which collaborates with the education of thousands of young people in the country.