Lottery Publicity
If you win a major prize in Denmark, the question of publicity is one of the first you must face. It is up to you whether you want to have your name revealed in the public domain, or whether you want to stay anonymous. You can then start to think about other key decisions such as what you want to do your money.
Duty of Confidentiality
When you play a Danish Lottery game, the dealers who sell the tickets have a duty of confidentiality with regard to what you are playing, how much you have spent on the game and so on. You can therefore be confident that all the relevant information about your purchase has remained private.
When a major prize is won, the Danish Lottery has the right to publicise these bare facts, such as the area where the ticket was purchased and how many rows were played. You will then be asked if you want to go public when you claim your prize and speak to a lottery official.
Publicity vs Anonymity
If you opt for publicity, your name will be revealed and your image used to promote news of the win. You can expect to be put up in front of the media and asked questions about your new-found wealth.
If you do not want to go public, the Danish Lottery still has the right to publish information about the municipality where you live, and may also report details about your plans for the future, how you felt when you found out, and so on. However, your name will not be revealed.
There are advantages and disadvantages to going public or staying private. If you keep a win secret, it allows you to try and continue life as normally as possible with nobody knowing about the big change that has happened.
You do not have to worry about people requesting money from you or the possibility that some may resent you for being so lucky. It can be difficult if friends or family believe they are entitled to a handout, while you may have security concerns if everyone in the world is aware of how much you are worth.
On the other hand, you may want to embrace publicity and share the story of your success. You may feel uncomfortable about keeping such news secret, or think that going public could help you going forward - whether it is with business ventures, charitable projects or a media profile.
Big Winners
The vast majority of Danish winners decide to stay private. For example, the player who won a national record of 315 million kr on Eurojackpot in February 2015 opted to remain anonymous. It was revealed that the winning ticket had been purchased at local Kvickly store in Elsinore’s Prøvestenscentret, but his name remained a secret.
The Danish Lottery can sometimes release more non-personal details about winners even when they stay anonymous. For example, it was revealed that the 310 million kr Eurojackpot winner from April 2021 was a man in his 40s from the Roskilde Municipality. He wanted to keep his identity a secret, but he told the Danish Lottery that he had immediately quit his job and was looking to buy a Mercedes, while he also wanted to help as many people as possible.
Occasionally, winners do decide to go public. When the first prize in Eurojackpot reached its €90 (570 million kr) maximum in January 2017, there were five winning tickets. One of those was sold in Denmark, and it was claimed by Leif and Aase Sommer. They bought their ticket from the Ølsted branch of the SuperBrugsen supermarket chain and spoke to the media when they came forward. They said they would pay off their mortgage, look after loved ones, get a new car and go on a cruise. Leif also revealed that he would provide his ex-wife with a percentage of the winnings, as they parted on good terms and had two children together.