The Thai lotto is organized by the Government Lottery Office (GLO). The lottery is a legalized form of gambling, with 28% of all profits funnelled to the state for social activities. However, there is an underground lottery industry that can be up to five times larger than the official one.
While the odds of winning thai lotto are not as good as many international lottery games, it’s still worth a try. The game has a national popularity and the passion of people chasing lucky numbers results in a ritual and tradition that many want to be a part of. A little more regulation and higher top prizes would be nice, but it’s definitely worth giving it a go.
The draw takes place twice a month, on the first and 16th of each month. The draws are televised live and start at 3:00 PM (Indochina Time). There is a maximum prize of 30 million baht. The lottery also offers lesser prize draws, including a two-digit number that has no cash value and four three-digit numbers that carry different prizes.
Each drawing starts with the Draw Chairman selecting a colored ball to determine the order of the prize draws. The prize numbers are then drawn in the following order: yellow for second prize, pink for third prize, green for fourth prize, and blue for fifth prize. The final two-digit number is then drawn, and if it matches the last two-digits of your ticket, you win!
Every ticket has a two-digit number that carries a small prize of 2,000 baht. There are also four three-digit numbers that carry a prize of 4,000 baht each. There is a 6,000 baht bonus prize for matching all six digits in the correct order. After each draw, officials clear the balls off of the machine to show that all ten numbers were drawn.
While most of Thailand’s population plays the government lottery, it has a large underground lottery network that can be 5 times larger than the official one. Known as “suphan yong”, these illegal operations are operated by syndicates and use the official Thai lottery system to run their own draws. They make money from a combination of ticket sales and bribes to rig the numbers.
While the government has cracked down on this practice, many Thais continue to gamble despite the country’s ban on it. Some have even taken to betting on European soccer matches, with up to $2 billion changing hands every year. A shady sector of the gambling industry has emerged to cater to this aching need for risk-taking and a quick fix.
