The Mega da Virada, Brazil’s largest lottery draw, was finally held on the morning of 1 January after a delay on New Year’s Eve caused by technical problems at Caixa. The special draw, which carries one of the country’s most watched jackpots, awarded an estimated R$1.09 billion.
The winning numbers announced for the 2025 Mega da Virada were: 59 – 21 – 32 – 13 – 33 – 09. The draw was followed live by national media and the Portal iG, which confirmed the numbers after the morning event.
Mega da Virada 2025 Brazil
Caixa, the federal bank that administers Brazil’s lotteries, experienced system failures on 31 December that disrupted betting services and the live transmission of the draw. Players reported error messages, pending confirmations in the app and website, and significant delays when placing bets. The disruptions forced organisers to postpone the draw to the following morning to ensure a transparent process.
Despite the operational problems, Caixa completed the draw and provided guidance for winners. The R$1.09 billion figure already reflects the mandatory 30% income tax withholding, meaning the advertised amount is the net sum to be distributed among winners. Because the probability of a single winning ticket in the Mega da Virada is low—around 0.1%—the prize is commonly shared among multiple winners.
Winners have up to 90 days from the draw date to claim prizes. For the 2025 contest, that deadline falls on 31 March 2026. Prizes above R$10,000 are typically released by Caixa within two business days once the required documentation is presented. Unclaimed amounts that lapse are redirected to the Fies higher education fund, as per existing regulations.
The 2025 Mega da Virada represents the largest prize in the contest’s history, roughly 60% higher than the previous year. Caixa attributes the increase to policy changes that doubled the portion of lottery revenues allocated to the special draw, and raised to 90% the share of the funds reserved for players who hit the sena, or six-number match.
The draw took place amid a schedule of regular lottery contests. Caixa had earlier planned standard draws for Lotofácil, Lotomania, Quina, Dupla Sena, Super Sete and +Milionária. The organisation said it would continue to run those regular contests while handling the backlog produced by the New Year’s Eve outage.
Authorities and Caixa officials have stressed the importance of transparent execution for major draws. Technical failures on high-visibility dates highlight the need for resilient infrastructure as millions of Brazilians participate in these contests each year. For now, attention will turn to prize verification and the process of notifying winners.
Those who played the Mega da Virada are advised to check their tickets against the published numbers and to follow Caixa’s official channels for instructions on claiming prizes. With such a record sum at stake, the 2025 draw is likely to prompt significant public interest and scrutiny as claims are processed in the coming weeks.
Key Takeaways:
- Mega da Virada 2025 was drawn on 1 January after a delay due to Caixa system failures.
- Winning numbers: 59 – 21 – 32 – 13 – 33 – 09; estimated prize R$1.09 billion, net of income tax.
- Prize already has 30% income tax deducted at source; winners must claim within 90 days.
- Changes at Caixa increased the special contest allocation, pushing the 2025 jackpot to a record level.
