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A Group of Friends Lost the +Milionária Ticket, Replayed the Bet with the Same Numbers, and Won Twice — Earning R$ 173 Million in a Rare Case in Espírito Santo.
What seemed like a stroke of bad luck turned into one of the most unlikely stories in the Brazilian lottery. A group of 24 friends from Santa Maria de Jetibá (ES) lost the ticket for the bet they had made on the +Milionária but decided to replay the game with the same numbers — and ended up winning twice. The episode, confirmed by Caixa Econômica Federal and reported by Folha Vitória, caught the attention of the country not just for the prize amount, but for the coincidence that doubled the participants’ luck.
The Lost Ticket That Became the Doubled Prize
According to the lottery where the game was registered, the friends always bet together. In that drawing, they combined the numbers 04, 21, 29, 33, 39, and 42, which they considered “lucky”.
However, the original ticket was lost before the drawing — and to not miss out, they decided to replay the bet, with the same dozens and at the same lottery office.
The result surprised even the employees at the location: both bets won.
Each of them was worth R$ 86 million, totaling around R$ 173 million — double the prize expected for a single ticket.
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With 24 shares, each participant will receive approximately R$ 7 million, one of the highest prizes ever recorded in a pool in Espírito Santo.
Luck Twice and a Rare Statistical Coincidence
Statistics experts consider what happened to be practically impossible. The chances of winning a single time in the +Milionária are already extremely low: 1 in 238 million.
Winning twice with the same bet — even repeated — is something that is unlikely to happen again.
The mathematician Daniel Moreira, consulted by local media, explained that the case “only occurred because the participants made the same combination twice.” In other words, it wasn’t a second drawing, but the duplication of the winning bet, which made the system recognize the two tickets as winners.
Joy in the City and Rush to the Lotteries
In Santa Maria de Jetibá, a city with just over 40,000 inhabitants, the news caused euphoria. The lottery where the bets were made was packed with curious onlookers and gamblers wanting to “follow in the footsteps of the pool.” With the repercussions, the municipality began to receive visitors from neighboring cities just to play in the same place.
Employees reported that the winners have been making pools for years and always bet on the same dozens. “They are organized, do everything together, and always register at the same point. This time, the coincidence surpassed any expectations,” said an employee.
The Million-Dollar Amount and What Happens Now
The total prize of R$ 173 million has already been confirmed by Caixa Econômica Federal. According to the rules of the +Milionária, since the two tickets were validated separately, each one is treated as an individual winner. In other words, the group will receive twice the corresponding value for the main prize.
The participants have not yet had their names officially disclosed — a common practice for high prizes to protect the winners’ security. Local sources say the group consists of merchants, farmers, and freelancers from the region.
The Phenomenon of Pools
Pools represent a significant portion of the bets in the +Milionária and Mega-Sena. According to Caixa, about 40% of winning tickets are from collective games.
The reason is simple: sharing costs allows to bet with more combinations, increasing the probability of hitting — even though the prize has to be divided.
In the case of the Espírito Santo group, the individual amount is still considered extremely high: each one is expected to receive around R$ 7.2 million net, after mandatory taxes have been deducted.
Repeated Bet: Error, Superstition, or Calculated Luck?
The decision to repeat the bet was made on impulse, according to local reports.
One of the participants reportedly suggested replaying the ticket “to not bring bad luck,” since the numbers had been chosen as a group.
Without imagining what was to follow, they replayed the bet minutes later — a gesture that, in retrospect, changed everyone’s lives.
For behavior specialists, stories like this help fuel the mystique of luck and the popular fascination with lotteries. Even in the face of almost impossible probabilities, hope and superstition continue to motivate millions of daily bets.
Brazil and the Fascination with Million-Dollar Draws
Cases like that of Santa Maria de Jetibá reinforce the Brazilian tradition of collective betting.
Since the 1980s, organized pools in companies, families, and small towns have turned the act of playing into a social event.
The +Milionária, created in 2022, is now the lottery with the highest prize value and the lowest chances of winning from Caixa. Still, the volume of bets continues to grow, especially when prizes are accumulated.
Twice Luck, Once Lesson
The case of the Espírito Santo pool has become an example of persistence — and improbable coincidence.
The group that lost the ticket and decided to try again shows that, in the lottery, luck and stubbornness can go hand in hand.
In the small town in the interior of Espírito Santo, the friends now share more than a prize: they share the story of a double victory that has become part of the folklore of betting in Brazil.
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