A customer at Casa do Papel in Almeirim experienced a stroke of luck on Tuesday. They purchased a scratch card for three euros and ended up winning a total prize of 12,000 euros.
This prize amounts to 500 euros per month over two years.
“Today our morning started in a very special way! We couldn’t believe it!!! 500€ a month for 2 years! A breath of fresh air for a loyal customer,” the establishment revealed in a Facebook post, where they also shared an image of the winning scratch card.
The publication Almeirinense reported that the winner was a woman who was ecstatic upon realizing she would receive an ‘extra’ income. The regional newspaper also noted that the delighted winner expressed plans to use the money for urgent repairs on her grandmother’s house roof.
Scratch card sales reached 1.848 billion euros last year
In May, it was revealed that the year 2024 was the second-best ever in gross sales of Santa Casa de Lisboa’s social games, surpassing 3.1 billion euros, with the highest-ever value of prizes paid. The scratch card stood out, accounting for more than half of this amount (58.8%).
The Instant Lottery registered a marginal growth of 0.6%, increasing from 1.836 billion euros to 1.848 billion euros, maintaining its level of representation in the portfolio (58.8%), revealed a Santa Casa statement.
According to the 2024 Annual Report and Accounts of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa Gaming Department, the institution closed 2024 with “the second best result in its history in terms of gross sales, with a volume of 3.142.9 billion euros (surpassed only in 2019).”
From this amount, the State received a total of 895.5 million euros, divided between 673 million euros through the distribution of results to beneficiaries and 211.6 million euros through Stamp Duty, “the highest ever generated by the sale of social games.”
“The year 2024 recorded the highest ever payment value of prizes by Jogos Santa Casa to bettors, totaling 2.073.2 billion euros,” according to the report.
According to the Santa Casa provider, 2024 “was the year in which sales through digital channels reached the highest value ever” and emphasized the importance of understanding that “this is a trend and cannot cease to be in social games.”
However, it was emphasized that the social games operated by the institution “are fundamentally based on a physical point of sale” and the network of mediators, ensuring that Santa Casa will continue to “fully respect” the gambling concession it was granted.
Despite the social games being the institution’s primary source of revenue, the issue of addiction is a concern, although the provider highlighted that “social games do not represent more than 15% of total gambling in Portugal” and “the scratch card represents about 7%.”
