Mega Millions: Odds for Winning the Jackpot

How likely are you going to win the Mega Millions jackpot, and what are the odds of doing so?

The previous time someone won the lottery's jackpot was in the month of April.

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If you ever want to play Mega Millions for a chance to score the $1 billion jackpot on Friday, you have a chance...

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... although a little one.

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In Friday's draw, there's a $1.05 billion jackpot, the third greatest in history, and hundreds of people are confident of winning.

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Despite our insistence, there are few ways to win and keep the prize.

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But that doesn't decrease the fantasy of individuals who buy tickets or who, given the stakes, have helped grow Mega Millions participation.

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How likely is it that you will end up taking home the top prize?

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They are extremely rare. One in 302.5 million. But it looks like none of the participants really care about that.

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According to Marie Kilbane, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Lottery Commission, nationwide sales increased significantly the previous week...

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...going from 116 million for the drawing held on July 19 to 172.1 million for the drawing held on July 22.

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It's been more than three months since someone took home the jackpot from the Mega Millions lottery.

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On April 15, one lucky person from Tennessee took home a jackpot worth twenty million dollars.

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Since then, there has not been a single winner with all six numbers in any of the subsequent 28 draws.

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Because of this factor, the value of the stock market has increased to more than one billion dollars.

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