A lucky guy wins the lottery jackpot with a chance of 1:1.2 million, already snagged 45,000 dollars 15 years ago

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Winning a jackpot in a lottery is so unlikely that hardly anyone can achieve it. A man in the USA won twice in 15 years and had even more luck with the latest jackpot.

What did the man win? On June 11, 2026, a man in Chicago hit the big jackpot in a lottery and won 1.3 million US dollars (about 1,137,000 euros). He had only casually picked up a ticket; he actually just wanted to buy a drink at a gas station.

That alone makes the man a great lucky one, but it’s not the first time he’s won in this lottery.

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The 2nd win in 15 years

What has the man won in the past? As illinoislottery.com reports, the man could hardly believe it himself. According to the website, this was already the 2nd time he won in this lottery. The man, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: That’s kind of strange – 15 years ago I actually won 45,000 dollars in exactly this game, which was still called “Little Lotto” back then.

According to lotteryusa.com, the chances of winning the jackpot in the lottery he won are 1 in 1,221,759. Having a second win after 15 years, and then hitting the jackpot, is even more unlikely. But his luck doesn’t end there. The average jackpot for this lottery over the past 12 months was 425,479 US dollars. The 1.3 million the man won was the largest jackpot during this period.

Interestingly, the gas station receives a bonus of 1% based on the jackpot for selling the lottery ticket.

However, keep in mind that winning the jackpot is so unlikely that hardly anyone can achieve it. Compared to this, the classic lottery game in Germany has an even lower odds of 1 in 139,838,160.

With the money won, the man wants to buy a new house and secure retirement for himself and his wife. But not all jackpot stories end well. One retiree lost her winnings of 71.5 million euros after just a week: Retiree wins 71.5 million euros in the lottery, loses the entire winnings just a week later


This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.