Edmonton Oilers online 50/50 raffle sells out with record-setting $5.4M pot
Posted August 5, 2020 4:48 pm.
Last Updated August 5, 2020 6:49 pm.
EDMONTON — The Edmonton Oilers online 50/50 raffle has hit another record and had to close early after it reached the server provider’s maximum allowable tickets sales.
The Oilers Entertainment Group says the final estimated jackpot Wednesday is $5.4 million, with the lucky winner taking home $2.7 million.
The other half of the funds raised from the raffle will go to the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation.
Tickets went on sale Wednesday at 9 a.m. MT for Alberta residents only. An hour and a half later, the pot reached $1 million. It surpassed $3 million by early afternoon.
Monday night’s raffle for Game 2 of the Oilers-Blackhawks series shamed the previous record for the largest sports raffle as the pot surpassed $3.2 million.
The previous record was held by Toronto Raptors fans when the 50/50 raffle reached $2 million during the 2019 NBA Finals, the year the team won the championship.
For Game 4, ticket sales are to open at 9 a.m. MT on Friday and Oilers Entertainment Group says its online 50/50 service provider is working to address the maximum ticket issue before that game.
“The passion and support for the 50/50 raffle has been exceptional and is yet another concrete example of Oilers fans’ commitment to their community,” the company said in a statement.
“You should expect improvements in the very immediate future as we chase yet another 50/50 record.”
Edmonton’s jackpot overshadowed every other Canadian city by miles.
In Winnipeg, the 50/50 raffle reached $180,000. In Vancouver, it was around $200,000. Calgary’s came closest to Edmonton’s, with a paltry $300,000.
The lowest pot was in Toronto; Canada’s largest city and the only other NHL hub raised $17,000.
“Edmonton has a much more passionate fanbase than Toronto,” said freelance sports reporter Avry Lewis-McDougall. “It’s more the every day working fan who is involved in the 50/50 buy. And I think it’s more of a western thing. You see the bigger pots in Calgary, in Vancouver.”
