Lottery Mix-Up in Norway Leaves Thousands Heartbroken Over Incorrect Prize Notifications

In a shocking turn of events, thousands of Norwegians were led to believe they had won millions in the Eurojackpot lottery after receiving erroneous notifications regarding their winnings. The state-owned gambling company, Norsk Tipping, notified "several thousand" winners of inflated prize amounts on Friday, which they later clarified were incorrect. The mistake stemmed from an issue in converting Eurocents to Norwegian kroner, where the prize amounts were mistakenly multiplied instead of divided.

Norsk Tipping’s CEO, Tonje Sagstuen, who only began her tenure in September 2023, publicly apologized for the error and subsequently resigned the next day. She expressed remorse over the confusion caused to the recipients, who had plans to use the supposed winnings for holidays, home renovations, or new apartments. One woman shared her disappointment after receiving a notification claiming she had won 1.2 million kroner ($119,000) yet only received a much smaller amount.

Following an emergency board meeting with Norway's Ministry of Culture, which oversees the gambling company, there were calls for enhanced control over their operations to ensure such a mistake does not recur. The Ministry's Culture and Equality Minister, Lubna Jaffery, emphasized the importance of accuracy in services provided by Norsk Tipping, which enjoys exclusive rights to gaming services in Norway. Despite acknowledging previous criticism and facing technical issues in the past year, the company seeks improvement in practices going forward. This incident raises concerns about the reliability of the system, leaving many questioning the future of their lottery experience.