The Christmas lotterywhose first draw dates back to 1812, went from being just another draw to increase State revenue (at that time, to finance the public coffers during the Napoleonic invasion) to being, more than 200 years laterin a more tradition of Spanish Christmasfollowed with devotion by millions of people who, every year, buy and share tenths hoping that the hype will spread luck every December 22.
The Spain of 2024 is very different from that of 1931 and, however, like any tradition, the Christmas lottery He already gathered friends and family to do the same, on the same day and at the same time, 93 years ago: paying attention to the radio and the press to find out if his number was the one chosen by the children of San Ildefonso.
However, in 1931 luck would be nowhere to be found: for the first and only time in history, the Christmas Lottery Jackpot It didn’t touch anyone.
1931, the year in which El Gordo did not play
The first Christmas Lottery of the Second Republic was held on December 22, 1931 in the Madrid Mint. At stake: a total prize of 30 million pesetas of the first prizeEl Gordo, for two series (about 79 million euros today adjusted for inflation, according to the calculator on the Measuring Worth website).
According to the chronicles of the time, Gordo had to wait, and left when there were only 30 balls left to extract. The lucky number was 24,717. However, when announcing the city that had been awarded the prize, there was a surprising announcement: “Book now!”
The public present at the Mint reacted between disappointment and frustration at the controversial result: the ‘Gordo’ had not been sold and the amount would go entirely to the State coffers. According to ABCmany in the audience lamented and protested: What a deal for the State, as if they didn’t have enough!
The next day’s press reported the historic result: ABC opened its front page reporting the “surprise” of the year “for all Spaniards”: “Thirty million pesetas for the Public Treasury.” Other newspapers, such as El Independiente de Lugo, echoed what happened on their front page: “El Gordo went to the reserve with his full salary.”
What happens if Gordo doesn’t touch anyone?
Although nothing prevents it, It is very difficult for this precedent to be repeated currently: the winning number does so in all its series (193 series of each number, that is, 1,930 tenths per number), and taking into account that it is the most popular draw in the Spanish Lottery, and that it is also a tradition to subdivide it into participations, it is almost impossible for Gordo’s number not to hit anyone (although in 1931 it happened with a much greater probability than the current one, 1 in 40,000 and not 1 in 100,000 as in the present).
In the event that it happens,It would be the State that would take over the entire prize, just as if it were an unclaimed prize.. El Gordo would go to the State coffers, since he keeps all the undistributed prizes from the draw after the three-month deadline to claim them, which in this edition would be March 24, 2025.