Every summer, Spain starts dreaming about the same thing: el Gordo, the top prize of the Christmas lottery. Tickets for the 2026 draw are already on sale, and on 22 December the whole country will stop to listen to children singing numbers. Here is the story in easy Spanish, with plenty of big numbers to practise.
La noticia en español fácil
This story mixes A2 and B1. Watch how Spanish writes big numbers with a full stop, not a comma: 400.000.
Ya están a la venta los décimos de la Lotería de Navidad de 2026. El sorteo es el martes 22 de diciembre.
Un décimo cuesta 20 euros. El premio más famoso se llama el Gordo: son 400.000 euros por décimo. El segundo premio es de 125.000 euros por décimo y el tercero, de 50.000.
Este año hay 205 millones de décimos a la venta, y el sorteo reparte 2.870 millones de euros en premios.
El sorteo es muy especial. Los niños y las niñas del colegio de San Ildefonso, de Madrid, cantan los números y los premios. Millones de personas lo ven en la televisión o lo escuchan en la radio.
En España, la lotería de Navidad es algo social. La gente compra décimos con la familia, con los amigos y con los compañeros de trabajo. Muchos bares y asociaciones venden participaciones: son partes pequeñas de un décimo.
Es una tradición muy antigua: empezó en 1812, en Cádiz. Este año cumple 214 años.
Ganar el Gordo es muy difícil: la probabilidad es de una entre cien mil. Pero cada diciembre, millones de personas dicen la misma frase: «¡Ojalá me toque!».
«¡Ojalá me toque el Gordo!»
The story in English
Tickets for the 2026 Christmas Lottery are now on sale. The draw is on Tuesday 22 December.
A ticket, called a décimo, costs 20 euros. The most famous prize is called el Gordo, “the fat one”: 400,000 euros per ticket. The second prize is 125,000 euros per ticket and the third, 50,000.
This year 205 million tickets are on sale, and the draw gives out 2,870 million euros in prizes.
The draw is very special. Children from the San Ildefonso school in Madrid sing out the numbers and the prizes. Millions of people watch it on television or listen on the radio.
In Spain, the Christmas lottery is a social thing. People buy tickets with family, friends and colleagues. Many bars and clubs sell participaciones: small shares of a ticket.
It is a very old tradition: it began in 1812, in Cádiz. This year it turns 214.
Winning the Gordo is very hard: the chance is one in a hundred thousand. But every December, millions of people say the same words: “I hope I win!”
Words for the lottery
Tap the speaker to hear each one.
La Lotería de Navidad
A2–B1- el sorteo[ehl sohr-TEH-oh] the draw
- el décimo[ehl DEH-see-moh] a lottery ticket (a tenth of a full ticket)
- el premio[ehl PREH-myoh] the prize
- el Gordo[ehl GOHR-doh] the top prize
- la participación[lah pahr-tee-see-pah-SYOHN] a share of a ticket
- me ha tocado[meh ah toh-KAH-doh] I’ve won (it fell to me)
- ¡Ojalá me toque![oh-hah-LAH meh TOH-keh] I hope I win!
- cien mil[syehn meel] a hundred thousand
(The pronunciation guides show the Latin American “s” sound for c before e and i to keep them simple; in most of Spain, décimo and cien start with a soft “th”.)
Grammar spot: big numbers and “ojalá”
Big numbers. Spanish writes thousands with a full stop and decimals with a comma: 400.000 euros is four hundred thousand, and 2,5 is two and a half. Mil never takes an s (dos mil, cien mil), but millón does, and needs de before a noun: 205 millones de décimos. Start with prices in Lesson A1-11: Using Numbers for Age, Phone Numbers and Prices.
Tocar. To win the lottery, Spanish says the prize “touches” you: «me ha tocado la lotería». It works like gustar, with me, te, le.
Ojalá. This lovely word, from Arabic, means “I really hope”. It is always followed by the subjunctive: «¡Ojalá me toque!», not me toca. You’ll meet it properly at B1 in Lesson B1-11: Wishes and Wants.
Good to know: sharing is part of the tradition
Many people buy a ticket at work, so the whole office wins or loses together. Nobody wants to be the only person in the office who didn’t buy the winning number! When the Gordo lands in a small town, the TV news shows neighbours celebrating in the street with cava. The draw is also famous for its long, sung list of the smaller prizes, la pedrea, and for the reintegro, which gives you your 20 euros back if your last digit matches the Gordo’s.
Quick facts
- Draw: Tuesday 22 December 2026.
- One ticket (décimo): 20 euros.
- El Gordo: 400,000 euros per ticket. Second prize: 125,000. Third: 50,000.
- 205 million tickets, 2,870 million euros in prizes.
- Chance of the Gordo: 1 in 100,000.
- First held in 1812, in Cádiz.
Try it
Read this number out loud: 125.000.
Answer: ciento veinticinco mil.
Which is correct: «dos miles de euros» or «dos mil euros»?
Answer: «dos mil euros». Mil doesn’t change in the plural.
Your friend wins a prize. What might she shout?
Answer: «¡Me ha tocado!» (I’ve won!)
Next, read about another December tradition: the twelve grapes of New Year’s Eve.
