Spain's Christmas Lottery brings several big prizes to Murcia

Winning tickets in Murcia this year were snapped up in Cartagena and San Pedro del Pinatar, even by some cruise visitors passing through

The 2025 Christmas Lottery, Spain’s famous Lotería de Navidad, brought some big wins to Murcia, with the third prize landing in San Pedro del Pinatar and Cartagena.

The Christmas Lottery, the biggest lotto in the world, hands out billions of euros in winnings. Even tourists passing through Cartagena took advantage of the stop to get their tickets in. Lottery shops in Cartagena reported that lots of tourists from all over queued for their décimos!

In Murcia, the winning third prize tickets were sold at two shops: El Perolo in San Pedro del Pinatar and El Gato Malo de la Suerte in Cartagena. In San Pedro del Pinatar, El Perolo is known as the lucky lotto shop, people travel from neighbouring towns to buy their tickets at El Perolo, sometimes even from neighbouring regions. They make a day out of it for the town. They close off the street and lay out tables with snacks and drinks. Everyone in the town knows when El Perolo have a winning ticket, as they set off fireworks for every win and use confetti cannons.

Each third prize ticket is worth €50,000. The 2025 Christmas Lottery is set to hand out €2.772 billion in prizes nationwide. The top prize, El Gordo, pays €400,000 per décimo, with winners paying 20% tax on anything above €40,000. After tax, third prize winners in Murcia take home €48,000.

The Christmas Lottery in Spain is not just about winning a few bob; it really brings the community together. Friends, colleagues, businesses and families often buy tickets together and then hopefully celebrate together. Even if you don’t win, it’s still a great day that kicks off Christmas. And there’s always the El Niño lottery to look forward to, the smaller January draw.

Image 1: Administración El Perolo

Image 2: Administración El Perolo

Image 3: Pa Lopagan