The Big Ticket Winner
Big Ticket Abu Dhabi, one of the biggest names in the UAE’s lottery market, has produced more than 250 millionaires and multiple car winners by awarding over Dh400 million, till date. Abdul Rasheed is the latest and perhaps the most remarkable addition to the list. When the hosts of Big Ticket Abu Dhabi called the 48-year-old Abdul Rasheed Allipra Valappil on Sunday May 3 to tell him he had won Dh25 million, his first response was not celebration. It was disbelief. “You are not joking? How many million?” he asked, before reality gradually settled in.
He bought the ticket on April 19 before his birthday on May 30. But this has never been solo. He pooled money with 26 other drivers and technicians for six years, the group largely consists of Malayalees and a few Pakistanis. Despite splitting the Dh25 million among 27 people, Abdul Rasheed said he will not quit his job. “I will continue as a driver,” he told Gulf News plainly. His 27 co-winners are equally grounded. “We all are working and living in Rashidiya. No one is planning to leave. We will decide together what to do,” he said.
UAE’s Lottery Market Today
The UAE’s lottery market has expanded rapidly since the federal government formalized commercial gaming. The UAE Lottery, operated by The Game LLC under the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, launched in late 2024. Within its first 10 months it registered more than 600,000 users online and paid out to over 247,000 winners, including three Dh1 million jackpot winners and 168 winners of Dh100,000 prizes.
UAE’s lottery market growing wider could be significant. Analysts at CBRE estimate that a legalized UAE gaming market could generate $8.5 billion annually if fully developed. Today only three lotteries are authorized in the country: the UAE Lottery, plus the long-standing airport lotteries Big Ticket Abu Dhabi and Dubai Duty Free, all operating under GCGRA oversight.
Mahzooz and Emirates Draw
Two years ago the UAE’s Lottery Market was overhauled with lottery rules with the creation of the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority in September 2023. As part of an “industry-wide mandate” to build a well-regulated gaming environment, both Mahzooz and Emirates Draw were instructed to pause operations from January 1, 2024. Both companies had applied for the UAE’s sole national lottery licence. GCGRA told operators there would be only one national lottery operator. In July 2024, the licence was awarded to The Game LLC to run the “UAE Lottery”.
After the decision, Mahzooz operator Ewings said it had not been awarded the licence and called the news “disappointing,” noting it kept staff at full capacity for 7 months awaiting the outcome. The company said it is now planning “new ventures”. Emirates Draw, the distributor of over Dh168 million to more than 800,000 winners in less than three years, also paused UAE ticket sales from December 31, 2023. Big Ticket Abu Dhabi and Dubai Duty Free continued their operations without any obstruction. These were later confirmed as authorized airport lotteries under the new GCGRA framework.
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