'Rigged' national lottery claim after 20 players share jackpot with numbers 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 in South Africa

  • The six consecutive digits left 20 players with 5.7million rand (£279,000) each
  • While no less likely than any other combination, it is unusual for 20 people to win
  • Perplexed South Africans took to social media to claim it must have been fixed 

By Afp

Published: | Updated:

South African lottery players have claimed fraud after the numbers 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 were drawn last night, leaving 20 people with a share of the jackpot. 

The six consecutive numbers were drawn on Tuesday night, leaving the 20 winners with 5.7million rand (£279,000) each, while another 79 people won around £300 for guessing the first five numbers but not the PowerBall 10. 

While the outcome is no less likely than any other combination of numbers, 20 people getting the jackpot is highly unusual in South Africa's lotto draw. 

However, it was claimed in 2013 that as many as 10,000 people choose the numbers 1 to 6 every week in the UK's National Lottery, likely hoping that others will not adopt the same strategy. 

The results of the lotto draw on Tuesday night, showing six consecutive numbers which left 20 people with a share of the jackpot in South Africa

The results of the lotto draw on Tuesday night, showing six consecutive numbers which left 20 people with a share of the jackpot in South Africa 

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES? 

The official chances of winning the South African lottery, where six numbers are drawn from 1 to 52, are 20,358,520 to 1.

No six-number combination is any more or less likely than any other.

But the chances of the winning numbers consisting of six consecutive digits (eg 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52) is 47/20,358,520 - or 0.00023%.

Thus, non-consecutive results are likely to occur 99.99977% of the time.

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South Africa's National Lotteries Commission (NLC), which regulates the game, said the six consecutive number combination was unprecedented and vowed to look into the draw. 

'Congratulations to tonight's 20 winners of PowerBall draw,' the lottery announced on Twitter late on Tuesday.

'These numbers may be unexpected but we see many players opt to play these sequences.'

Many perplexed South Africans took to social media on Wednesday alleging the results must have been fixed.

'Lotto exposing themselves that they are a scam,' said one Twitter user.

'20 people discussed this and shared that jackpot equally,' ventured another. 'Absolutely no way in hell that's a coincidence.'

Some even called for a judicial graft probe similar to the one looking into alleged corruption during ex-president Jacob Zuma's nine-year tenure.

Lottery spokesman Ndivhuho Mafela aid the commission will conduct a review 'and if there is anything that went wrong we will declare that.'

'So we are in the process of doing that currently.'

While it is not uncommon for two players to share the jackpot, multiple winners are extremely rare. The numbers are drawn live on TV.

In March 2003, 33 players won a share of the jackpot, according to a South African website that tallies results.  

While the outcome is no less likely than any other combination of numbers, 20 people getting the jackpot is highly unusual in South Africa's lotto draw (file photo)

While the outcome is no less likely than any other combination of numbers, 20 people getting the jackpot is highly unusual in South Africa's lotto draw (file photo) 

South AfricaNational Lottery

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