Online 50/50 raffles in Alberta top over $100-million

If there’s one thing we know about Albertans, it’s that they love a good 50/50 raffle — here in Edmonton, especially.

Now, we have had a chance to glimpse into the numbers behind it and since the Edmonton Oilers kicked them off in the bubble a year ago, they’ve totaled over $100-million in Alberta.

Here are some numbers from the last year solely from NHL games, as cited by Postmedia’s Terry Jones.

• $86 million in gross sales.
• $30 million from NHL Hub City bubble games.
• $56 million from 2021 regular season and playoffs.
• $43 million to winners.
• $24 million already dispersed to charities with millions more to be designated in the coming weeks.
• It created SEVEN millionaires.
• A total of 27 winners received cheques for more than $500,000.
• The average jackpot for 2021 was $935,000.
• The average payout was $467,500.

It gets crazier, too. According to Jones, the raffles went online for the World Juniors last year, which totaled over $15-million. During the curling bubble held in Calgary this spring, an additional $1.235-million was raised.

The Edmonton Football Team held a raffle in honor of the late Joey Moss which produced a pot of $991,800, while the World’s Longest Hockey Game generated one of $399,165.

All in all, it’s safe to say the 50/50 game in Alberta has been changed forever.