The winner of a $139 million Ohio Lottery jackpot has entered their last month to claim the prize before the Lottery turns the money over to the state.
The winning ticket, which matched all six numbers, was purchased at a Walmart store in Ohio on July 3, 2024. But the owner has yet to come forward and claim the prize.
They have until midnight on December 31, 2024, before the winning ticket expires. If the win isn’t claimed by then, it will take the title of world’s largest unclaimed lottery jackpot win.
The Win
The July 3 Powerball Lottery drawing pulled the numbers 02, 26, 33, 55, 57 and red Powerball 22.
The winning ticket matched all six numbers and was bought at the Walmart SuperCenter on Brandt Pike in Huber Heights, around 40 miles north of Dayton, Ohio.
Should the winner actually come forward and claim their prize, they won’t get the headline $139 million in one go. They can claim it as 29 yearly payments of around $4.5 million or one lump sum of $66.5 million, explained further here by the Powerball Lottery. The win will also be heavily taxed at both state and federal levels.
If the win remains unclaimed, the $139 million will be distributed across the local governments of all 45 states that participate in Powerball draws. The amount each state receives will be proportionate to the number of ticket sales from the draw, and the states will decide what to do with the extra funds.
Unclaimed Jackpots
This is far from the only case of a large unclaimed lottery jackpot in the U.S. In fact, the $1.13 billion Mega Millions jackpot won in March 2024 in New Jersey has also yet to be claimed. In the Garden State winners have a year from the draw date to claim their prize. There is also a $197 million winner from Encino, California in the Mega Millions Lottery that will expire Dec. 7 if unclaimed.
In 2023, a $36 million Mega Millions winning ticket was sold in Florida, but no one came forward to claim it.
The largest U.S. lottery jackpot to expire while unclaimed, was $77 million in 2011. The Ohio winner of 2024 has a month to claim their prize before taking that unenviable record by some distance.
The largest unclaimed lottery win globally was in the UK. In June 2012 a EuroMillions jackpot win hit for £63.8 million – which at the exchange rate of that time was USD $99 million. However, despite a nationwide campaign by the National Lottery to find the unaware winner, no one ever came forward as the ticket holder.
The Ohio winner will also take the global missed jackpot record on December 30, if they haven’t claimed the prize by then.
David is an online casino expert who specializes in online slots and boasts over 10 years experience writing about iGaming. He has written for a wide range of notable publications, including eSports Insider and WordPlay Magazine.
David graduated Derby University with a BA Degree in English Literature and Creative Writing.
