Lotto Ireland: Players warned to buy tickets early for record jackpot after technical issues
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Irish Lotto players are being urged to grab their tickets early for tomorrow's jackpot after many found themselves locked out of the website and app on Saturday night.
Ahead of the weekend draw three days ago, the volume of customers eager to be in with a chance of winning the incredible amount caused the site to crash across all platforms.
With the jackpot reaching its highest ever sum in the history of the game, it's likely thousands of people will be putting their hats in the ring and buying tickets ahead of the draw.
If you're planning to purchase yours online or on the app, officials are encouraging players to do so early on to avoid any disappointment.
A National Lottery spokesperson said: "The excitement among our players throughout the country is absolutely palpable as we wait for the next winner of Ireland’s highest ever Lotto jackpot prize.
"Just before last Saturday’s draw, we saw a huge volume of players visiting our website and the National Lottery App causing our system to become briefly overwhelmed from the high level of demand for tickets.
"Our technical team have continued to work hard to resolve the issue and to ensure it does not reoccur.
"Ahead of Wednesday’s draw, we are encouraging all of our players who are hoping to become the biggest Lotto winner of all time to purchase their tickets early and in advance of the 7.45pm cut-off time for sales on Wednesday evening. Will this be the week we see a record breaking Lotto jackpot win? Just two days to go until we find out!"
Those who opt to play this week could also be in for a huge win, even without matching all the numbers on Wednesday night.
As the jackpot is capped, this means that no additional money will be added to the jackpot prize until it is won.
The funds that would normally go to the jackpot will now be distributed to the next lower prize tier at which there are winners.
Ahead of the record breaking Lotto draw, the National Lottery are asking players to purchase their tickets early either in-store, through the National Lottery app or at www.lottery.ie ahead of the cut-off time for sales at 7.45pm on Wednesday.
The spokesperson added: "The excitement levels are getting higher and higher as this Wednesday will mark the second draw in which the jackpot has been capped at a record €19,060,800.
"For the first time in the history of the game, the Lotto jackpot is capped, which means that any excess in additional prize money usually added to the jackpot prize is distributed to lower prize tiers where there is a winner.
"Last Saturday, two players in Dublin benefited from the jackpot prize roll-down to the Match 5 + Bonus prize tier. The two players shared an astonishing prize fund of €1,652,784, each winning €826,392."
