The lottery numbers that won have already been repeated in the history of chance games, even when there were millions of other possibilities. We have analyzed such cases and noticed how well Math explains it without any fraud or supernatural event being responsible for that repetition.
Find out more about how that can occur and if the frequency can be predicted with real cases and our evaluation of past events below.
Contents
How Often Do the Same Lottery Numbers Repeat?
According to the regular odds, we can infer that the same lottery numbers repeat very rarely, and more possible combinations equal even rarer events. After all, more combinations equal more difficult odds for each sequence. For example, let’s take a look at a few popular lotteries and the frequency of repetition:
| Lottery | Total possible combinations | Repetition of jackpot-winning numbers |
|---|---|---|
| Powerball | 292,201,338 | Same numbers with Powerball once in 2000 after occurring in 1993. |
| Mega Millions | 290,472,336 | Never |
| Bulgarian Sports Toto 6/49 | 13,983,816 | Same 6 winning numbers two drawings in a row (2009) |
| Mifal HaPayis Lotto | 16,273,488 | Same numbers, two drawings in a row, but in a different order (2010) |
Notice how the lotteries with incredibly difficult odds have a smaller occurrence because of the unlikely possibility that is already rare in other games.
Meanwhile, games with odds of 1 in 13 to 16 million have experienced an extremely uncommon repetition in consecutive drawings. However, that happened once. In Israel’s Mifal HaPayis, for example, it took 52 years for that event to happen. Still, it is possible!
The statistician David J. Hand complements our logic:
“Why you should not be surprised when long shots, miracles and other extraordinary events occur — even when the same six winning lottery numbers come up in two successive drawings.”
What Repeated Numbers Have Won the Lottery the Most?
We have learned that repetitions are so rare that they often only occur once in a lottery lifetime of 20, 30, or even 50 years. Therefore, there is no specific hottest combination that resulted in multiple wins.
On the other hand, if we are looking at numbers that were in jackpot combinations repeatedly, they will vary for each lottery. Here are examples based on the lotteries we have analyzed above, in order of frequency and for the past 10 years:
- Powerball: 26, 41, 16, 22, 42 + 24
- Mega Millions: 31, 17, 3, 29, 10 + 3
- Mifal HaPayis: 3, 14, 26, 32, 33, 36 + 1
- Bulgarian Sports Toto 6/49: 34, 23, 42, 44, 35, and 37
Keep in mind that statistics cannot help you win the lottery and that the most common lottery numbers have the same odds of appearing as other numbers.
Real Stories of Repeated Winning Numbers in Lotteries
We have researched more information on real stories of winning numbers that repeated in history for different lotteries. You will notice the similarities in those cases and need to have a little faith in how lotteries work to accept that those rare cases can happen.
The Double Draw of Bulgarian Sports Toto 6/49
The dates September 6 and 10 in 2009 were marked by surprise and a national uproar, when the numbers 4, 15, 23, 24, 35, and 42 were drawn in those two consecutive drawings.
Despite all accusations, the government came forward and confirmed that both drawings were random and followed all the security protocols, as published by Reuters. It is hard to believe, but it can happen just like any other combination.
Coincidence in Israel’s Mifal HaPayis
Another unbelievable but factual occurrence was in Israel back on September 21st and October 16th of the same year, 2010. Both drawings had the numbers 13, 14, 26, 32, 33, and 36, with only the bonus number changing from 2 to 6, according to this source.
As always, there were accusations of the game being rigged, as if the people had found a glitch to point to the problem. Once again, the operator proved, through an audit, that the numbers were the result of a possible coincidence in random drawings.
Those drawings, 4 weeks apart, could have been years apart or only a single drawing of distance. It happens, but it is still impressive to acknowledge a real case.
According to Isaac Meilijison, a statistics professor talking about that occurrence:
“The incident of six numbers repeating themselves within a month is an event of once in 10,000 years.”
Brazil Mega Sena: Five Out of Six Lottery Numbers Repeated
Another repetition right in the next drawing occurred in Brazil’s Mega Sena lottery. The drawings number 308 and 309 occurred on October 27th and 31st, 2001, and resulted in 5 equal numbers: 4, 11, 25, 39, and 55, reported by BNL Data.
However, Mega Sena is a 6-number lottery, which means that the second prize and not the jackpot was paid to the same numbered tickets.
That unique case made the third-tier prize pay more (122.69 BRL) than the second prize (122.53 BRL) for the first time in its history, due to the large number of players scoring the latter.
What Causes Repeated Lottery Numbers – The Statistics of Repeat Probability
Lottery numbers repeat simply because they can, as any combination holds the same odds of happening, and no numbers have different weights or probabilities. Still, there are factors that can enhance the odds of lottery winning numbers repeating, like the total numbers and frequency, explained below.
Total Number of Possible Combinations
The more possible combinations a lottery has, the less likely it is for a single combination to occur twice. Therefore, if a lottery has a shorter format, it has a higher probability of having repeated winning numbers.
That means that a Pick-3 game with odds of 1 in 1,000 will often have repeated digits in the exact same order compared to a 6/49 lottery with 13,983,816 possibilities.
Frequency of Draws and Total Draw Count
The more drawings a lottery has, the more often repeated numbers and combinations can occur. After all, each draw is another chance of that happening, regardless of how remote that chance is.
For example, even Powerball, with its unbelievable number of over 292 million possibilities, had two equal occurrences seven years apart. On the other hand, Mega Millions, with over 302 million combinations at that time, never had that.
While both had two weekly drawings back then, the fact that Powerball added another drawing day in 2023 increases the chance of that happening again. Every week, Powerball has one more chance of drawing a combination that has already occurred.
Law of Large Numbers
The mathematical Law of Large Numbers states that the average of the results converges to the expected value as we increase the number of trials. In this case, the number of trials is represented by the total drawings, and the results are the drawn numbers.
Therefore, the more drawings occur, the more likely the results are to converge to the expected value – in this case, a repeated combination.
The problem with lotteries is that the total number of combinations is usually far greater than the number of drawings. For example, Powerball had a bit more than 5,000 drawings between 1992 and 2025 (33 years).
Considering 5,000 out of over 292,000,000, the law of large numbers is hardly applicable due to the extreme difference.
An Example of Calculating the Repetition of Lottery Winning Numbers
Every single drawing is independent, which means that the fact that a certain combination appeared today does not mean it will be harder for it to come up in the next drawing.
Let’s take the result of 1 – 12 – 23 – 34 – 40 – 49 for a 6/49 lottery like Canada’s Lotto 6/49. If that happened on a Wednesday with odds of 1 in 13,983,816, those are also the chances of that happening on the next drawing!
It is just highly unlikely because there are too many possibilities, just like we explained in the headings above.
“Games of chance are governed by rigid mathematical laws … No system can improve your chances, which are determined once and for all by the laws of probability.” Ian Stewart, Mathematician
Are Repeated Lottery Numbers Pure Chance or Manipulation?
Repeated lottery numbers are pure chance and randomness in any legitimate lottery because an occurrence cannot prevent numbers from being drawn again.
According to the theory of randomness, random events are not free of the creation of patterns. Patterns still occur, and that is precisely because there is true randomness in that event, with everything possibly occurring any number of times.
As seen above, if the lottery had not so many possible combinations in comparison to the number of drawings that occur, the law of large numbers would make repetition even more common.
In more detail, we have covered the truth about repeated lottery numbers below.
Randomness Has No Memory
When we talk about lotteries being random, we are serious. Despite the disbelief of most players when they see repeated results, there is no logic in believing that it would be impossible, even in consecutive drawings.
Randomness means that anything can happen, including events that have already occurred, and that goes for lottery numbers, too. For example, the National Weather Service states that the odds of being struck by lightning in your lifetime are 1 in 15,300. Those are relatively low compared to a lottery drawing because we consider a long time of 80 years.
The odds of being struck by a second lightning would be the exact same, as being struck once does not affect the probabilities of other lightning. However, when we consider the chance of being struck twice in a lifetime, we multiply the odds. In that case:
- 15,300 x 15,300 = 234,090,000
In terms of probabilities, the odds of being struck twice are incredibly rare. The same goes for the lottery, but that does not prevent it from happening in a sequence. In other words, our analysis implies that impossibility has no place when we talk about random events.
No Statistical Method for Predicting Future Lottery Numbers
As proof that the lottery is random, besides all protocols and procedures that are documented for serious games, any statistical method is useless for predicting numbers.
Therefore, if there is no way to figure out which numbers will come out next, that is because there is no pattern or influence going on.
Official Reassurance
In all cases where there were serious accusations of fraud, the operators or responsible organizations came forward to prove the contrary. The cases, such as the one of Mifal HaPayis, were proved through an audit to be legitimate.
How Should Repeated Numbers Affect the Lottery Strategy?
We can conclude that simple logic implies that repeated numbers can occur and should not affect your lottery strategy, regardless of which one it is. Just because a certain combination occurred, that does not mean it won’t happen again or that the odds changed for any of its numbers.
The law of large numbers does not apply to the lottery, but the theory of randomness makes it clear to us that repetitions can occur regardless of how unlikely that seems.
Still, we have seen that all cases resulted in public distrust due to the “Gambler’s Fallacy”, which is the mere belief that randomness can be affected by past results, making a repetition with no manipulation hard to believe.
In other words, we know for sure that it is pretty pointless to let any numerical results or repetition change anything in how you play the lottery. It can be frustrating to miss the same combination twice, but that is how a game of chance works: under complete unpredictability.
FAQs
Have Powerball numbers ever been repeated?
Yes, Powerball numbers have been repeated in history once, when the same numbers that occurred in 1993 repeated in 2000. The numbers were 15, 22, 24, 32, 39, and the Powerball 18.
Have Mega Millions winning numbers ever been repeated?
No, Mega Millions winning numbers have never been repeated in the history of the drawing game so far. Since new changes have made its format easier and dropped the odds, the likelihood of a repetition has increased.
Have the same lottery numbers been won twice?
Yes, the same lottery numbers have already been won twice. For example, in the Camelot National Lottery, a man won the UK Lotto with the same numbers two years apart back in 1995.
Can the lottery be won with past winning numbers?
Yes, the lottery can be won with any numbers, including past winning numbers, regardless of how difficult it is to see a repeated lottery win.
Has the lottery ever repeated the same 6 numbers more than once?
Yes, some lotteries have already repeated six numbers, such as Bulgarian Sports Toto 6/49, and the Powerball, if we consider the extra number. There is no verifiable record of the same six numbers being drawn in a single lottery more than two times.
