Meath is celebrating a double dose of lottery luck as two local players scooped major EuroMillions prizes in early May.
One man won the EuroMillions Plus jackpot of €500,000 after purchasing a ticket at SuperValu on Main Street, Ratoath. The lucky winner, who recently began adding the Plus option to his usual Quick Pick, said it was the best decision he’s made in a long time.
“I had a few old tickets lying around and decided to get them checked,” he explained. “One printed a slip telling me to contact the National Lottery. I didn’t think much of it until I noticed the shop was decorated with balloons. On my way home, I realised I might actually be the winner.”
He pulled over to check the numbers online — and confirmed the life-changing win. “The first thing I did was call my partner. She was completely speechless. We’re absolutely over the moon.”
The couple is now planning a family holiday to Italy and looking forward to a more secure future. “With college coming up, this means we can really plan ahead. It’s a dream come true.”
In a separate win, another man from Meath turned a €5,000 EuroMillions raffle prize into an astonishing €255,000. He had used personally significant numbers to play a single line online.
“I was truly delighted with the €5,000 — I thought, ‘Happy days!’” he said. But when he contacted the National Lottery’s Prize Claims team, he learned his prize was actually worth over a quarter of a million euro.
Despite the windfall, reality quickly set in. “Unfortunately, I had to go back to work, and it was a hectic afternoon — how typical? But in my mind, I was already lying on a beach somewhere.”
Asked about his future plans, he laughed: “We’ve always wanted to go to California, and I’ve already drafted an itinerary. My car sounds like a wooden ship and the dash lights up like a Christmas tree — a new car is definitely in the plans.”
Both men say the wins have brought immense joy and unexpected opportunities to their lives.
