UK Thunderball
4.0

UK Thunderball

£ 500,000 fixed jackpot played four times a week.
Next Draw:

Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Jackpot:

GBP 500,000
  • 1 :
  • 2
  • : 18
  • : 52

Latest UK Thunderball Results and Stats

Guide to playing UK Thunderball online

The UK Thunderball is one of the most outstanding lotteries in the world. Hosted four times per week, the UK Thunderball is the second most popular lottery in the UK. It offers a fixed lottery jackpot every single time. Within this UK Thunderball review, we tackle everything from the history of the lotto to how to play and your lottery winning odds.

UK Thunderball Review: A Brief Introduction

The UK Thunderball was first hosted in 1999. Thunderball is operated by Camelot and is one of the great UK National Lottery alternatives out there.

The lottery itself consists of 5 primary numbers and a 6th ball, the Thunderball. The game has been noted as sharing similarities in its format to that of the US Powerball. The big difference between the two is obviously the jackpot amount.

The UK Thunderball is a fixed lottery jackpot, which means that the prize will never change – unlike in progressives. Progressive jackpots, such as the Powerball, will see the prize grow – as long as it is not won by anyone. The value of the two lotteries is a significant change.

Thunderball will always have a jackpot prize of £500,000 (approx. €570,000 and $645,000). The Powerball, on the other hand, starts off at $40 million and gets larger by $10 million each week the jackpot isn’t claimed. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that the Thunderball still is hosted four times per week! Namely, on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at approximately 8pm GMT.

Some Thunderball History

The first draw of Thunderball was made on Saturday June 12, 1999. A few years later, on the 23rd of October 2002, the first ever Wednesday draw was held.

The growing popularity of the Thunderball saw new technology be introduced for the lottery. The Smartplay Halogen II draw machines were brought in at the end of 2009. And, only a few months later, the Thunderball would see drastic changes made to the foundation of the lotto.

In May 2010, Thunderball had become such a hit, the jackpot doubled from £250,000 to £500,000 as the maximum cash prize! However, this would come at a cost, for the number of balls in the main game was increased from 34 to 39. The Thunderball was given a boost as players who matched it would receive an additional consolation prize. A couple days after these modifications were put into play, Thunderball introduced a Friday draw to go with Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Fast forward to 2018 and Thunderball took it on them to bring in a fourth draw which takes place on Tuesday. To this date, there’s not a single lottery which has more weekly draws.

How to Play UK Thunderball

If you’re curious to have a go at playing the UK Thunderball, it’s not as difficult as one may initially feel. The tickets cost £1 a pop which is relatively low. In case you choose to buy UK lottery tickets online, your best bet would be to check out one of the online lottery agents which would allow you to play, even if you’re not residing in the UK.

The lottery itself is very simple. You can win prizes ranging from £3 to the £500,000 jackpot. You’ve got 5 primary picks and a 6th Powerball. The main game ranges from numbers 1-39 whilst the Thunderball is from 1-14. Alternatively, you can opt for the Lucky Dip option which is a number generator giving you a random line.

You can purchase up to 10 pay slips with up to 7 lines on each one at one time. That would result in 70 different picks for winning the lottery. After purchasing, keep an eye on the latest lottery news for updates on the winning numbers.

Thunderball Lottery Syndicate Betting

Another way of playing Thunderball is by joining lottery syndicates. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, syndicate betting is when you purchase a share in a group of other players, and you all have a better chance of winning. The good thing about the UK Thunderball is that it’s so easy to become part of a lottery syndicate. There’s a setting online which will put you in a group and credit you after the draw has taken place. It’s not always going to be that straightforward though. Learn how to make lottery syndicate agreements which are not a piece of cake right here.

Winning UK Thunderball Prizes

By now, you’ve got an idea that landing the 5 numbers plus the Thunderball will result in the £500,000 jackpot. And yet, if you are not fortunate enough to correctly pick all the numbers barring the Thunderball, you still get to claim £5,000.

When you’ve got four correct numbers with the Thunderball, you will be the winner of £250. Without the Thunderball, four primary game picks will get you £100. Predicting three numbers plus the Thunderball will result in a pay-out of £20 whilst without the Thunderball, the pay-out is halved to £10.

Two numbers plus the Thunderball will also be valued at £10 with only having one number plus the Thunderball only going to pay £5. Finally, having only the Thunderball will result in a pay-out of £3.

UK Thunderball Lottery Prizes and Odds of Winning

The UK Thunderball Lottery offers nine prize tiers, including the jackpot of £500,000 which has the odds of winning at 1 in 8,060,598. The table below demonstrates the odds of winning each prize tier plus the amount of the winnings per division.

Prize Tier Winning Combination Prize Amount Odds of Winning

1 – Jackpot

5 main numbers + TB

£500,000

1:8,060,598

2

5 main numbers

£5,000

1:620,046

3

4 main numbers + TB

£250

1:47,416

4

4 main numbers

£100

1:3,648

5

3 main numbers + TB

£20

1:1,437

6

3 main numbers

£10

1:135

7

2 main numbers + TB

£10

1:111

8

1 main number + TB

£5

1: 35

9

Thunderball (TB) only

£3

1: 29

Payment Options

If you do happen to be one of the few UK Thunderball jackpot winners, you’ll receive the pay-out in one sum. Unlike many other lotteries around the world, you do not have the choice of going for an annuity payment installment scheme. The lump sum of £500,000 will have to suffice.

Conclusion

Contrary to what some online websites might suggest, the UK Thunderball is certainly not a scam. There’s been enough winners over the years and the popularity of the lotto is there for all to see.

We hope this UK Thunderball review has given you an insight on how the lottery works and what chances you have of taking home a prize. The Thunderball is one of the best UK online lottery reviews we’ve had the privilege of analyzing yet.