The July 29 payout would be one of the biggest in history.
The Mega Millions drawing has climbed to an estimated $1.1 billion after no winning numbers were drawn Tuesday, making it only the third time the jackpot has crossed the billion-dollar threshold in the game’s two-decade history.
Numbers will be drawn again Friday at 11 p.m. ET. Tickets can be purchased across 45 states, plus the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and you can still play even if you live in a state where tickets aren’t available. However, if you win, you’ll have to return to the state where you purchased your tickets to claim your winnings.
The current jackpot is almost as large as the record amounts won in 2018 and 2021, when players with winning numbers were handed roughly $1.5 billion and $1.05 billion, respectively. The 2018 jackpot remains the world’s biggest lottery prize ever won on a single ticket.
On Tuesday, nine people almost won the cash prize, which was $830 million, but they had only the first five winning numbers and missed the Mega Ball, Mega Millions said.
