subject: What Is Called The Fat One? Answer: - The El Gordo [print this page] In the country of Spain, lottery involvement is very common and as is the nature of many European countries, lottery is a way of life. It is traditional for citizens to participate regularly and sure enough "La Primitiva," (Sometimes called - el gordo de la primitiva) the state organized contest is a major centre of attention twice a week.
This lotto is the grandfather of them all, nevertheless, El Gordo - also better-known as the Christmas "fat one" is too amazing to comprehend. This is the most frequent lottery draw of the year by a long way and marks the beginning of the festive season in no uncertain terms. It's said that King Carlos 111 presented this competition back in 1763, as he wished his people to have a better way of life.
This el gordo primitiva Christmas lotto draw is the biggest in the world with a total prize fund payout somewhere near two billion Euros, with a huge first jackpot prize which, because of the nature of the competition, is automatically split amongst all various duplicate winning tickets. So many people want to play the El Gordo lottery, that it is estimated to be as much as 97 percent of the whole population, which the actual set of lotto numbers is sold in multiples. You can purchase a whole ticket for 200 as a "billette", or a 10th of a ticket, otherwise known as a "decimos."
The El Gordo is very much different from every other lottery in the world, as a lot of players of the gordo loteria do not bet for the remainder of that year. As such, it can be seen as a significant custom, instead of a lottery competition.
Tradition is everything when playing the El Gordo lotto, as the drawing is administered identically each year. Also, the winning numbers and the prizes are sung in public by Scholars at the San Ildefenso School. State radio and television pay particular attention to this event; on the morning of December 22 each year at about 3 hours before the drawing itself takes place. There are a massive number of prizes and the drawing procedure is very involved. Again, in keeping with tradition, winners very often donate a part of the proceeds to the school children.
The El Gordo lottery is particularly favorite as there is a very good chance of acquiring something. Don't forget, that the actual occasion itself is best-known as the Christmas lottery, unlike the El Gordo, as this is reserved for the actual first prize itself. The potential rewards are so high that it is usual for people to unite together to boost their odds of winning, and these El Gordo syndicate groups are another means of celebrating tradition at this joyful time of the year by gathering friends and acquaintances together.
The El Gordo must not be mixed up with the weekly draw that is also run by the Spanish governing body and otherwise recognized as La Primitiva or primitiva el gordo. The said title is very often used to refer to both of them, although passionate Spanish citizens are aware of the difference between them. As is popular in state lotteries, wins are nontaxable.
