Powerball Makes History as Jackpot Dodges Players Again, Prize Swells to $1.7 Billion

• Gambling News
• 04 September 2025

After players failed to win the game's top prize on Wednesday night, Saturday's Powerball drawing will go down in history.

On Wednesday, September 3, 2025, the red Powerball was number 22, while the other Powerball numbers were 3, 16, 29, 61, and 69.  None of the six numbers on any ticket matched.

The 41st consecutive Powerball drawing without a jackpot occurred on Wednesday.  That matched the previous jackpot drought in the game, which ended on April 6, 2024, with 41 drawings.

A new record will be set on Saturday, the 42nd Powerball drawing in this unprecedented run.  When the next six Powerball numbers are drawn live from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee on Thursday through Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET, officials with the Multi-State Lottery Association anticipate increased sales.

With a cash option of $770.3 million, the anticipated annuitized jackpot for the drawing on September 6 is $1.7 billion.  Both figures are before potential state and federal taxes.  The $1.7 billion prize is the third-largest jackpot in US lottery and Powerball history.

Top-10 Lottery Jackpots — Game — Where Prize Won

1. Powerball — $2.04 Billion — Nov. 7, 2022 — CA
2. Powerball — $1.765 Billion — Oct. 11, 2023 — CA
3. Powerball — $1.7 billion (estimated) — Sept. 6, 2025 — ??
4. Mega Millions — $1.6 billion — Aug. 8, 2023 — FL
5. Powerball — $1.58 billion — Jan. 13, 2016 — CA, FL, TN
6. Mega Millions — $1.53 billion — Oct. 23, 2018 — SC
7. Mega Millions — $1.35 billion — Jan. 13, 2023 — ME
8. Mega Millions — $1.33 billion — July 29, 2022 — IL
9. Powerball — $1.32 billion — April 7, 2024 — OR
10. Mega Millions — $1.26 billion — Dec. 27, 2024 — CA

Near-misses

On Wednesday night, the Powerball jackpot eluded participants, but the drawing nevertheless produced a number of payments that might change people's lives.

All five white balls were matched in 15 plays.  Four of the tickets featured the optional $1 Power Play add-on, which doubled their payouts to $2 million, while eleven of those tickets won $1 million each.  California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wyoming were among the states where the Match 5 victories were sold.

$50K was collected by 117 Match 4 + PB victories.  To double their winnings to $100,000, another thirty-six people had the Powerball Play.

Across all reward tiers, 6,328,933 winning tickets were distributed.  4,633,418 people, or the bulk, just got their $2 play back.

Teachers Get $1 Million

A group of Ohio elementary school teachers who won $1 million in the August 6 drawing is one of the more remarkable tales from this Powerball run.

Although one of their members passed away from cancer six years ago, there remain ten school employees in the Powerball pool.  The club has persisted in covering the cost of her ticket and giving her kids a share of any profits.

"She’s been our guardian angel. She taught kindergarten here for years,” the pool organizer told CBS 10.

Each player will receive roughly $72K from the $1 million victory after federal and state taxes.