Source: Radio New Zealand
The changes to Powerball take effect in the second half of 2026. RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Changes coming for Lotto will make it less likely that people will win the big prize – but more likely they’ll collect a small one.
In what it calls its first “matrix change” in 19 years, Lotto will increase the number of Powerballs in its draw machine from 10 to 14.
This reduces the chances of winning Powerball from about 1 in 38.4 million to about 1 in 53.7 million for every line on a ticket.
Lotto will also add a “division eight” prize, raise the starting Powerball jackpot from $4 million to $5m, and increase the maximum jackpot from $50m to $60m.
Lotto chief executive Jason Delamore said the jackpot would be more likely to roll over to the next draw, which would deliver larger prizes when people won, while prizes in all other divisions would also be increased as part of the changes.
“The new Powerball division eight is a gamechanger. We expect its introduction will lift the total number of weekly Powerball winners by 30 percent, from about 47,000 winners to 62,000 winners on average.”
The changes to Powerball take effect in the second half of 2026.
He said lotteries around the world regularly refreshed their games in response to changes in population, customer expectations, inflation and other factors.
“Powerball had just eight balls when we launched in 2001. The jackpot started at $1 million and topped out at $15 million.
“We’ve made tweaks to the game in 2007, 2010, 2015 and 2017, so the current gap since the last update has been longer than usual.
“The changes we’re announcing today are our most exciting yet, with more chances to win and bigger prizes, including the new starting jackpot of $5 million, up from $4 million today.
“We’re really happy that we’ve managed to retain what people love about Powerball, while making a few refinements along the way.
“Furthermore, the price to play the game will remain unchanged.”
Massey University marketing expert Bodo Lang said he did not think the move would hurt ticket sales.
“Why do people play Lotto? The superficial surface answer is because they want to win money and maybe stop working. But what you’re selling when you’re selling a Lotto ticket is you’re selling hope.
“And if that hope is sustained by the new scheme I think it could totally work.”
Koura KiwiSaver founder Rupert Carlyon said people needed to be clear that Lotto was a type of gambling – not an investment.
“We know that people with lower financial security are more likely to buy Lotto tickets as they are looking for a way out of their current situation. People are already prioritising Lotto tickets over feeding their kids and these changes will only make it worse.”
He said many people realised they did not need to win a huge jackpot. “Even though that would be lifechanging, I think a lot of people would be really happy with something in the hundreds of thousands because it would probably make a large dent in their mortgage.”
Delamore said evolving Powerball was a key part of the organisation’s future strategy as it approaches its 40th birthday next year.
“Lotto NZ is owned by all New Zealanders and all of our profits – totalling more than $6.7 billion since 1987 – go to the Lottery Grants Board for distribution to the community.
“This change to Powerball will help support consistent and predictable returns back to a wide range of causes, including grassroots sports, cultural groups and health organisations.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
