Illinois player wins Mega Millions' first 2026 grand prize of $533M
An Illinois player won Mega Millions’ $533 million jackpot, the first grand prize of 2026, with numbers 16, 21, 30, 35, 65 and Mega Ball 7, choosing between the $533 million lump sum or a $244.2 million cash option; the ticket’s selling location wasn’t disclosed. Another Illinois player matched five white balls with a 5x multiplier for $5 million, and a Maryland player won $4 million with a 4x multiplier. It’s Illinois’s 17th jackpot win; the prize is the largest since Georgia’s $980 million jackpot in November 2025, and comes as Mega Millions’ major revamp aims to offer bigger prizes and better odds (1 in 290,472,336).