Powerball jackpot reaches $1.7 billion ahead of Christmas Eve drawing
Someone could be waking up very rich on Christmas morning. The Powerball jackpot has surged to $1.7 billion, with the next drawing set for Wednesday night — Christmas Eve.
If there’s a winner, the lump-sum cash option would be $781.3 million, before taxes. That’s a Christmas gift most people wouldn’t mind unwrapping.
Powerball and Christmas wins
There’s precedent for holiday luck. Powerball says they’ve drawn jackpot winners on Christmas Eve, in 2011, and four times on Christmas Day, in 1996, 2002, 2010, and 2013.
“Much like the holidays, Powerball is a game that brings people together to dream big and hope for a brighter future,” said Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO. “We hope this growing jackpot inspires excitement and joy, and, most importantly, good will to all.”
Plenty of smaller winners, too
Tuesday night’s drawing didn’t produce a jackpot winner, but it wasn’t a total bust.
The winning numbers — 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 and red Powerball 7 — helped nine people nationwide match all five white balls, each winning $1 million. Another 107 tickets won $50,000, and 28 won $100,000.
Lottery officials remind players to check their tickets carefully. Even without hitting the jackpot, there’s still real money on the line.
A record-setting year
Wednesday night’s prize is the fourth-largest Powerball jackpot ever. It’s also the second jackpot to crack the game’s top five in 2025, following September’s $1.787 billion drawing.
That prize was split between tickets sold in Missouri and Texas.
Now the reality check: your odds of winning are 1 in 292 million. But tickets cost just $2, and — statistically speaking — someone eventually wins.
The drawing will take place at 10:59 p.m. ET Wednesday from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee and will be streamed live on Powerball.com.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
