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MADRID - Residents of a small town in rural Spain won the top prize of 390 million euros ($750 million) on Friday in the world's richest lottery, known as El Gordo or "the fat one".
Locals in Almazan, population 6000, sang, danced and swigged champagne on the cobbled streets of their town in north-central Spain after some became millionaires in Spain's Christmas draw.
Up to 1800 tickets carry the winning number 20297, and the majority of them were sold from Almazan's lottery office, most others being purchased in towns in the provinces of Seville, Valencia and Alicante.
"It's 10 million for the whole family, we don't believe it yet!" shouted a young mother in Almazan on national television, cradling a baby in one arm and a champagne bottle in the other.
El Gordo is hugely popular among Spaniards, who are among Europe's biggest gamblers, and shops, offices and cafes ground to a halt for the draw which this year dished out 2.14 billion euros in winnings.
In a Spanish national ritual, the winning number was sung live on television by girls and boys from the San Ildefonso school for orphans.
Three out of four Spaniards buy tickets, and foreigners purchase them on the internet, in the nearly 200-year-old lottery that is a big money spinner for the Spanish state.
Though thousands of people win prizes, few become millionaires as most buy only a few tenths of a ticket, each of which costs 200 euros. Workers, families and bar patrons often chip together to buy tickets to increase their chances of winning.
- REUTERS
