R63.5 million Lotto jackpot up for grabs this Wednesday

For many South Africans, the middle of the week comes with a small but hopeful ritual: checking a lottery ticket and wondering if six numbers might change everything.

This Wednesday’s draw is giving players plenty of reason to dream. A combined R63.5 million is on the table across the National Lottery South Africa games, Lotto, Lotto Plus 1 and Lotto Plus 2 for the draw on 11 March 2026.

And after a weekend where no one hit the big jackpot, the prize pool has grown even bigger.

How the jackpot climbed to R63.5 million

The latest surge in prize money comes after Saturday’s draw on 7 March 2026 produced no jackpot winners.

That means all three jackpots rolled over into Wednesday’s draw.

The prize breakdown now looks like this:

• Lotto jackpot: R50 million

• Lotto Plus 1 jackpot: R1.5 million

• Lotto Plus 2 jackpot: R12 million

Combined, that brings the potential payout to R63.5 million for anyone lucky enough to match the winning numbers.

However, lottery operator ITHUBA confirmed that one jackpot had recently been reset after a player won R4 million the previous weekend which explains why the total isn’t a perfectly round figure.

The numbers from Saturday’s draw

Here are the numbers drawn during the 7 March 2026 draw:

Lotto:
04, 13, 14, 20, 20, 22, 47
Bonus ball: 29

Lotto Plus 1:
13, 16, 18, 20, 42, 50
Bonus ball: 05

Lotto Plus 2:
01, 13, 24, 32, 46, 48
Bonus ball: 12

Since none of these combinations produced a jackpot winner, the prize pool rolled forward to Wednesday’s much bigger payout.

Lotto vs PowerBall: the jackpot battle

While R63.5 million is nothing to scoff at, it still sits in the shadow of the massive PowerBall South Africa jackpot.

The PowerBall draw scheduled for 10 March has climbed to R124 million after 12 rollovers, nearly double the Lotto prize pool.

For many regular players, that’s why both games often end up on the same ticket.

What are your chances of winning?

Winning the lottery is never easy but Lotto does offer slightly better odds than PowerBall.

Here’s how it works:

• Lotto players pick six numbers from 1 to 58

• The odds of hitting the jackpot are 1 in 40,475,358

By comparison, PowerBall requires players to:

• Choose five numbers from 1 to 50, plus

• One PowerBall number from 1 to 20

That increases the odds slightly, with a 1 in 42,375,200 chance of winning the jackpot.

In simple terms: both are long shots but somebody wins eventually.

Why so many South Africans still play

Despite the slim odds, the lottery remains hugely popular across the country.

From taxi ranks to office tea rooms, conversations about “what I’d do if I won” are practically a national pastime.

On social media, lottery rollovers often trigger the same playful debate:

• “Tonight I’m resigning in advance,” one user joked on X.

• Another posted: “R63 million would fix a lot of Eskom problems at my house.”

For many players, the ticket isn’t just about winning it’s about the momentary thrill of imagining a different life.

How to buy a Lotto ticket

Tickets for Wednesday’s draw close 30 minutes before the draw at 21:00, meaning players have until 20:30 to enter.

You can buy tickets through several channels:

• The National Lottery website

• The National Lottery mobile app

• Dialling 1207529# via USSD

• Participating retail stores

• Many South African banking apps

Entry costs:

• R5 for Lotto

• R2.50 each for Lotto Plus 1 and Lotto Plus 2

That means R10 covers all three draws.

Players who don’t want to pick numbers themselves can opt for a Quick Pick, where numbers are generated automatically the same method used by the R179-million winner earlier in 2026.

How winners claim their prizes

If fortune smiles on you, there are a few rules to follow.

To claim a prize, winners must:

• Be 18 years or older

• Provide the winning ticket or confirmation

• Present valid identification

• Have a South African bank account

Claims must also be made within 365 days of the draw.

Payout locations depend on the amount won:

• Up to R2,000 – claim at retail stores

• R10,000 to R50,000 – Approved Prize Payment Centres

• Up to R249,999 – paid via EFT through participating banks

• Above R250,000 – claimed directly through ITHUBA offices

Six numbers that could change everything

With R63.5 million now on the line, Wednesday’s draw offers one of the bigger Lotto payouts of the year so far.

Of course, the odds remain steep.

But as millions of hopeful players across South Africa will tell you you can’t win if you don’t play.

{Source: The South African}

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