
Lucky ticket-holder lands the biggest-ever EuroMillions jackpot of £208million - and will be worth more than Adele, Anthony Joshua or Dua Lipa
A EuroMillions ticket-holder is now richer than Adele and can afford to buy the footballer Neymar after bagging £208million in the latest draw.
The anonymous player had the luck of the Irish on their side as they got hold of the winning numbers in the Republic, claiming the largest prize in the history of the game.
It marked the first time the EuroMillions jackpot had reached its cap of €250million (£208million) and been won outright.
Irish National Lottery rules mean jackpot winners can choose to remain anonymous and so the winner is yet to come forward.
But the staggering scale of the life-changing amount of money can be revealed - as it gives them a higher net worth than Adele, Anthony Joshua and Dua Lipa.
Ms Lipa, 29, is worth £115million while Mr Joshua, 35, comes in at £195million.
Meanwhile, Tottenham-born Adele, 37, is worth £195million.
Among the other celebrities to have their wealth dwarfed by that of the Ireland ticket-holder are Daniel Radcliffe (£100million), Harry Kane (£75million) and Sir Andy Murray (£110million).
Though, the winner just falls short of beating singer Harry Styles whose wealth amounts to £225million - an increase of around £50million from last year.
With their winnings, the anonymous ticket-holder is also potentially in a position to purchase the Brazilian footballer Neymar - who was sold from Barcelona to Paris-Saint Germain for €222 million (£200 million) in August 2017.
One of the priciest homes in the world - which was previously offered at $200 million, in the Caribbean - could also belong to them.
The extravagant house, located on the exclusive island of Mustique in the West Indies, includes nine separate buildings located on a sprawling 17-acre estate.
Offering panoramic views of the Caribbean coastline, the property is the priciest in the region's history, and its hefty price tag buys some of the most luxurious amenities available anywhere in the world.
Or if they fancy something a bit more off-field, the winner has the option of escaping to an exclusive Florida island to go and live next to Jeff Bazos - for the same amount of money.
Last night's winning numbers were: 13, 22, 23, 44, 49, and the Lucky Stars were 03 and 05.
The gain follows several consecutive rollovers, which caused excitement to build across Europe.
Tuesday night's draw was the fifth since the jackpot hit its maximum limit – triggering a 'must-be-won' event.
If no player had matched all seven numbers, the full prize would have rolled down to the next winning tier – but the Ireland ticket-holder struck gold just in time.
Meanwhile, in the UK, one player has also become a millionaire after winning the Millionaire Maker draw. The winning code was XPCD66044.
Each EuroMillions ticket bought in the UK automatically includes entry into the Millionaire Maker raffle, which guarantees at least one UK-based winner of £1million in every draw.
Meanwhile, Tuesday's National Lottery Thunderball numbers were: 02, 06, 12, 17, 39 and the Thunderball was 07.
No one claimed the £500,000 top prize, but two players matched five numbers to win £5,000 each.
In total, 106,671 people won prizes in the Thunderball draw, sharing a combined prize pot of £586,787.
EuroMillions tickets purchased in the UK must be claimed within 180 days of the draw date.
That means tickets bought for the June 17 draw are valid until Sunday, December 14, 2025.
Lottery organisers have urged players to check their tickets carefully, as thousands of smaller prizes remain unclaimed.
The latest jackpot win caps off a remarkable month for EuroMillions players in the UK.
This historic Irish win surpasses the previous EuroMillions record of £195million, which was won by a UK ticket-holder in July 2022.
The National Lottery is expected to release further details about the Irish winner in the coming days.
An anonymous UK ticket holder won the existing record jackpot of £195million on July 19 2022, while just two months earlier, Joe and Jess Thwaite, from Gloucester, won £184,262,899 with a Lucky Dip ticket for the draw on May 10 2022.
The UK's third biggest win came after an anonymous ticket-holder scooped the £177million jackpot in the draw on November 26 last year, while the biggest this year was £83million in January.
The latest prospects come after a son found his mother's winning EuroMillions lottery ticket tucked away with a heartbreaking message just days after her death in April.
Liam Carter, 34, originally from Hampshire but now living in Aberdeen, was sorting through his mother Anne's possessions after she died aged 67 when he found the ticket.
Mr Carter discovered a folded envelope inside her kitchen drawer, where Anne usually kept her tickets.
She had written on the outside of the envelope: 'Sat draw - don't forget!'
Mr Carter said: 'I nearly ignored it, but something told me to check. I scanned it using the National Lottery app, and it said it was a winning ticket — but I'd have to call the lottery line.'
He phoned the line and was told his mother, who played the lottery every week, had matched five of the numbers from the draw and had only missed the missing stars - meaning she had won a payout of £18,403.
BRITAIN'S BIGGEST LOTTERY WINNERS
An unknown UK ticket-holder was handed the country's record for a EuroMillions jackpot of £195million on July 19 2022.
That was even more than the prize landed by Joe and Jess Thwaite, from Gloucester, when they scooped a then-peak £184,262,899 with a Lucky Dip ticket for the National Lottery draw on May 10 that same year.
Mr Thwaite, a communications sales engineer, told how his wife who ran a hairdressing salon was asleep when he noticed the winning numbers on the National Lottery app - and he opted not to wake her while browsing for potential new homes.
And last December it was revealed a British participant had become the country's third biggest National Lottery winner of all time after hitting a jackpot worth £177million.
The single ticket-holder, who chose to stay anonymous, came forward to claim the EuroMillions jackpot after the draw on Tuesday November 26.
Among the big winners who did agree to go public with their good fortune were Colin and Chris Weir, from Ayrshire, who were handed £161million in 2011.
Colin died aged 71 eight years later after getting through just half of his jackpot, with most of it having been shared between family, friends, and charities.
The EuroMillions draw is a biweekly lottery in which members of the public in the UK and eight other European countries participate - with draws held on Tuesday and Friday evenings.
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