An In-depth Guide to Spain's La Primitiva Lottery

Overview

The Spain La Primitiva lottery started in the 18^th century, and players were required to match 5 numbers out of 90.  This lottery was created by the monarchy to raise money for the Spanish treasury.  This lottery was popular for 100 years and was brought back by the Organismo Nacional de Loterias y Apuestas del Estado in August of 1985.  The format that is used for this lottery is 6/49 and it is still played in Spain to this day. 

Lottery Schedule

The draws for the Spain La Primitiva lottery are held bi-weekly on Thursdays and Saturdays. 

How to Play

To play this lottery, players must select 6 numbers from a range between 1 and 49.  A Reintegro number will automatically be given to players.  The Reintegro number is used to determine the jackpot winner. The number is also used to determine ticket refunds as players that match this number will be refunded the cost of their lottery ticket.  During the draw, a 7^th number is drawn from the same drum as the other numbers, but it is not used to determine the winner of the jackpot.  Instead, this number is only used for the second place prize. 

Lottery Age Limit

You have to be 18 years of age or older to play the Spain La Primitiva. 

Participating Countries

The following countries participate in Spain La Primitiva: Spain

Prize Structure

The Spain La Primitiva has 5 prizes including the jackpot prize.  The structure of the prizes is:

• 1^st place prize: Match all 6 numbers
• 2^nd place prize: Match 5 numbers plus the bonus number
• 3^rd place prize: Match 5 numbers
• 4^th place prize: Match 4 numbers
• 5^th place prize: Match 3 numbers

Grand Prize

The size of the jackpot will grow until it has been hit. 

Jackpots

In the Spain La Primitiva, players will only win the jackpot prize if they match all 6 numbers that are drawn. 

Notable Wins

The highest jackpot prize that has ever been won in the Spain la Primitiva lottery was €73 million in February of 2014.  Other large prizes include €32 million in 2013, €26 million in 2007 and €24.92 million in 2005. 

Distribution of Revenue

The jackpot is rolled over to the next draw if it is not won, and prizes more than €2,500 will be taxed at a rate of 20%.  Some of the funds that are generated by this lottery are used for health, education, housing and other developments in Spain.