The UK49s is the only lottery in the world that provides its draws during lunchtime. It has been running for almost half a century and is now enjoying fantastic popularity in Africa, where its matches regularly attract large number of spectators. There are various reasons for this popularity. The fact that UK49s offers big payouts at lunchtime and that most people are willing to risk making their futures uncertain by playing it, means that it enjoys huge popularity in many African countries.
The seven and six number draw form a very important part of UK49s. Each of the seven numbers drawn represents one of the seven countries of the UK. The person with the most correct guess wins a prize. The actual game is based on probability and the person with the lowest probability wins. The odds given by the system do not allow any person or group of persons to win more than the other.
The draw closes at the same time each day, so if the UK49s game is being played in London during lunchtime on weekdays, then the lunchtime results are used to determine the evening draw. Most of the European countries and some others have very strict regulations on drawing the numbers. They all insist that the winning combinations are predetermined. This is in an attempt to control illegal gambling, which is often rife in Europe. Nobody has yet come up with an explanation as to why there is still no universally accepted lottery formula that can be used worldwide.
It is believed that the UK49s lottery takes place in south Africa because the country and the lottery games are a close family relationship. It is also possible that the name is similar as the Passport to South Africa or the Silver Passport to Cape Town – although this seems highly unlikely. It could perhaps refer to the fact that the name is thought to be an acronym for “Unlock Your Luck”.
Another possible explanation for why the UK 49s lotto game is referred to as the South African Lotto is the proximity of the countries’ two major cities – Johannesburg and Pretoria. Both of these cities are home to many professional and amateur lottery players. Many of them spend their hard earned money playing the UK 49s lotto every single day. It would therefore make sense that the winners of these games are drawn in the same way as well. The fact that the South African and the English languages are closely related by both cultures makes it even more likely that the name comes from the same place as the game.
In recent years the UK has introduced a new lottery type known as the seven number draw. This draws a set of specific numbers from a hat. This means that the chances of winning any specific number are slightly higher than with the regular European lottery. So the new lottery game that was introduced in South Africa may have started its life as the UK’s new South African booster ball.
