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

Photo credit: (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)
By Zach Laing
May 30, 2021, 15:37 EDTUpdated: May 31, 2021, 14:47 EDT
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.
• $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.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.
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