Despite various rumours that seven state government workers are the owners of the winning ticket in the Mega Millions lottery, the identity of the winner or winners is still a mystery. What we do know is that the winner or winners have hit a $319 million jackpot!

According to New York Lottery officials, no one had come forward to claim the prize since the lottery draw took place on Friday night. Are they still celebrating in the VIP room of the casino?

Officials and the shop owner have also confirmed that the winning ticket was bought at Coulson’s News Central in Albany, New York.

According to some colleagues, the winners are rumoured to be seven IT specialists from New York’s Housing and Community Renewal but no other details have been released about their identities. With job cuts looming in the state workforce, it would be great timing for the group. They certainly won’t have to worry about the grinding budget deficit from now on although they will certainly be upset for their colleagues as up to 9,800 employees might still lose their jobs.

The $319 million Mega Millions jackpot is the fifth-largest in the multistate game’s history. Even if it is confirmed that the amount will be split in seven shares, it’s still a life changing sum of money. It would leave each winner with $19.1 million each after taxes. It is likely that they are sitting with lawyers and financial advisers at the moment, trying to arrange for new bank accounts and investment opportunities before claiming the money from the Mega Millions Lottery.

Each Mega Millions game costs players $1 so it’s a great return on their gamble! In most of the 43 Mega Millions jurisdictions, players can decide to pay an extra $1 per game to multiply their non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, or 4 with the Megaplier.

Very large jackpots reaching over $300M are made possible on a regular basis because the game is played across so many states and that so many people take part. Also, more people take part when there’s a very large jackpot at stake. In Europe, the equivalent game EuroMillions is played across multiple countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. Each country can play using their local currency and the winnings are paid out in the currency of the ticket.