World's Biggest Lottery Game Is Coming to the UK — With Jackpots Over £1 Billion

British lottery players are about to get a chance to win more money than ever before. Starting on 21 July, people in the UK will be able to buy tickets for Powerball — the world's largest lottery game. Powerball is hugely popular in the United States, and this will be the first time it has ever been played outside of America. Tickets will cost £4 per line, and the starting jackpot is at least £12 million, with the top prize capable of climbing into the billions.

Allwyn, the company that runs the National Lottery in the UK, announced the news. UK players will compete in the same draw as American players, going after one shared jackpot. The current Powerball jackpot in the US is worth around £311 million. If that jackpot keeps rolling without a winner before 23 July, British players could be in the running for that enormous sum in the very first UK draw.

Powerball prizes start at £12 million and can grow into the hundreds of millions — or even billions. There are several different ways to win smaller prizes, too. In one unique prize tier, matching just two of the main numbers wins a fixed £8 payout. Matching five main numbers guarantees a fixed prize of £1 million, no matter how many people win. Other prize amounts may change depending on the results of each draw and how many people win.

The jackpot is paid out over 30 years, which is how prizes this large are made possible. This is the first time Powerball has ever run outside the United States, making it a historic moment for UK lottery players. Allwyn says this gives British players a chance to dream much bigger than before.

Powerball is not the only big change Allwyn has made recently. In June, the company updated its main Lotto game in the biggest way since it launched back in 1994. Players now get two chances to win for every £2 ticket they buy. Because of this change, the number of Lotto millionaires is expected to more than double — rising from about 140 a year to around 345.

Allwyn also recently finished a major £450 million upgrade to its technology. The project moved 18 million player records and more than three billion past transactions from old computer systems to new ones. It also updated the technology used by shops that sell lottery tickets. These changes help make the lottery run more smoothly for everyone.

The National Lottery has been doing well overall. In 2025, total lottery sales reached £8.1 billion — a 3.5% increase from the year before. More than £1.7 billion of that money went to good causes, including health, education, arts, sports, and charities across the UK. Another £967 million was collected in taxes.

Allwyn's chief executive, Andria Vidler, said she was excited about the launch. She said Powerball's arrival would be hard to miss, with a big launch event planned. She added that the company would be crossing their fingers for the first UK winner.