{"id":9905,"date":"2018-12-20T11:23:06","date_gmt":"2018-12-20T10:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/madridfoodtour.com\/?p=9905"},"modified":"2021-12-23T21:30:36","modified_gmt":"2021-12-23T21:30:36","slug":"spanish-christmas-lottery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devourtours.com\/blog\/spanish-christmas-lottery\/","title":{"rendered":"All About El Gordo: The Spanish Christmas Lottery Explained"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

With billions of euros handed out in prize money every year, the Spanish Christmas lottery is the biggest in the world.<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Walk through the center of Madrid<\/a>\u2014or any Spanish city or town\u2014this time of year, and you’ll already start to see this beloved tradition come to life. Lines spill out of lottery booths and wind down the street beneath twinkling holiday lights. Millions of Spaniards will pick up a lottery ticket (or several) in between running errands and holiday shopping, all eager to try their chance at the big jackpot, known as\u00a0El Gordo\u00a0<\/em>(which literally means “the fat one”). <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

If you’re thinking that the Spanish Christmas lottery seems to be a much bigger deal than most other lotteries you’re familiar with, you’re not wrong. Here’s how this annual tradition<\/a> came to be, why it’s important to so many everyday people here in Spain, and why you don’t want to miss out.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Must-know vocab for the Spanish Christmas lottery<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Before you run out and buy a full lottery ticket (don’t do that, unless you want to drop \u20ac200), you should know what you’re getting into. Here are some of the most common terms and phrases you’ll hear being tossed around in reference to the Spanish Christmas lottery.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n