Friday’s winning Mega Millions numbers for $1 billion jackpot

Hordes of lottery players are hoping Mega Millions delivered a billion-dollar baby.

Friday night’s winning numbers were 4, 26, 42, 50, 60 and Mega Ball 24.

The jackpot for the multistate lottery has ballooned to a gargantuan $1 billion after 36 consecutive drawings have failed to produce a Mega winner.

“We know that players love big jackpots, and when the numbers are this big, it becomes a national phenomenon,” explained Maryland Lottery Director Gordon Medenica. “Everyone wants to dream about what they would do if they won.”

As for why no one has emerged victorious since Sept. 15, 2020, the one-in-302,575,350 odds — in which players must correctly match the five regular numbers — ranging from one to 70 — and the Mega Millions ball, which runs from one to 25 — is the key factor.

© Keith Srakocic One potential billionaire in Cranberry Township, Pa., holds her Mega Million tickets.

One potential billionaire in Cranberry Township, Pa., holds her Mega Million tickets. (Keith Srakocic/)

Video: Mega Millions Jackpot Worth An Estimated $970 Million (CBS Los Angeles)

Mega Millions Jackpot Worth An Estimated $970 Million

CBS Los Angeles See more videos

SHARE

SHARE

TWEET

SHARE

EMAIL

What to watch next

• 

  The next mask war? 'Vaccine passports' speed reopening and reward participants

  
  MSNBC
• 

  ‘This has already taken far, far too long’: GOP aims to delay passage of covid relief bill

  
  MSNBC
• 

  Coming up on Thursday, Mar. 4 edition of 'Special Report'

  
  FOX News
• 

  Senator Sheldon Whitehouse accuses FBI of withholding information from Democrats

  
  CBS News
• 

  Man found guilty of murder in Toronto van attack

  
  Reuters
• 

  SpaceX Starship explodes after test flight landing

  
  Associated Press
• 

  Mississippi's largest city doesn't have running water, or a timeline for when it will be fixed

  
  CNBC
• 

  Anti-Asian racism and violence spiking during pandemic

  
  MSNBC
• 

  'America last': Lawrence Jones slams demands from big tech for more immigration

  
  FOX News
• 

  Kissinger says Trump, Nixon foreign policies similar, warns Biden on Iran

  
  FOX News
• 

  Returning to Fukushima's nuclear zone

  
  Reuters
• 

  The pet whisperer of Fukushima

  
  Reuters
• 

  U.S. contractor dies in rocket attack at Iraq base

  
  CBS News
• 

  New York Gov. Cuomo apologizes, but says he won't resign

  
  CNBC
• 

  President Biden criticizes Texas' decision to ease Covid restrictions

  
  CNBC
• 

  Australian Attorney-General Porter Denies Rape Claim

  
  Bloomberg

Click to expand

Replay Video

• The next mask war? 'Vaccine passports' speed reopening and reward participants Israel now has the record for the fastest vaccination campaign in the world, largely due to its implementation of "Green Pass" vaccine passports used to verify who has been fully vaccinated. As cases of the coronavirus persist, these vaccine passports may soon be arriving in America and other countries across the globe. In this special report, MSNBC's Ari Melber discusses how half the population of Israel already has their first dose of the vaccine, this "Green Pass" program, and some of the lessons the U.S. can learn from Israel as it works to getting back to "normal." MSNBC
• ‘This has already taken far, far too long’: GOP aims to delay passage of covid relief bill Republicans are planning to use a number of procedural moves to delay the passage of the covid relief bill. Congresswoman Katie Porter says the process already has taken ‘far, far too long.’ MSNBC
• Coming up on Thursday, Mar. 4 edition of 'Special Report' Bret Baier gives you a sneak peek of the next show. FOX News

UP NEXT

By comparison, the chances of being struck by lightning is about 600 times more likely than claiming a Mega Millions jackpot with one ticket. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tab the lightning odds at about one in 500,000.

Despite the $1 billion jackpot, players selecting the lump-cash option will actually receive $739.6 million, according to USA Mega.

Alarming decrease in monarch butterflies prompts extinction fears

If a New Yorker wins the lottery, he or she can expect a grand prize of $394,834,408 with the cash option after taxes. Choosing the annuity, which is paid in 30 annual installments, will net the victor approximately $17.5 million per year on average for a total of $534,877,830 once the final payment arrives in 2050, according to the lottery agency.

After more than four months of no grand winners, a Powerball ticket for Wednesday’s drawing worth a cool $731.1 million was identified.