On 22 December, the vast majority of Spaniards will be waiting to hear the children of San Ildefonso sing the winning numbers in the Christmas Lottery draw. Who doesn't already have a ticket at home? Of course, perhaps you didn't know some interesting facts about the most famous draw of the year. For example, did you know that there have already been two occasions in which the same 'Gordo' number has come up? And that 5 is the luckiest number? Here we tell you some anecdotes.

Seventy-five years ago, on 22 September 1946, the first matchday in the history of the Quiniela was held, and it was almost an instant success. Those first tickets consisted of seven games and were priced at two pesetas. Of all the money that was accumulated, subtracting the 10 percent that went to management and operating costs, 45 percent went to prizes and the other 45 percent to charity. The system was more complex than it is today, as it was not limited to predicting the prediction of a match but rather the number of goals scored by each team, very similar to today"s Quinigol.

Only two years after its creation, the well-known 1X2 system appeared and the number of matches included was increased to 14, including both the First and Second Divisions.

Taking advantage of this 75th anniversary of the Quiniela, we are going to tell you 10 anecdotes that perhaps you didn"t know or didn"t remember about this popular lottery game.

Can I collect a lottery prize even if I no longer have the ticket in my possession or it has been broken? The answer is yes, but only in some cases. Loterías y Apuestas del Estado and the current legislation foresee these cases and establish procedures to follow.

Once again this year at La Bola de Cristal we offer you the chance to buy Christmas Lottery tickets from other cities in the country without leaving Gijón thanks to the exchanges we have signed with lottery administrations in 21 different provincial capitals.

On Saturday 14th August La Liga returns and the first round of La Quiniela starts. From now on you can validate your bets either by visiting our lottery administration, at number 51 Hermanos Felgueroso Avenue in Gijón or through our website (no commissions).

Participations are one of the most popular ways of playing the Christmas Lottery. Shops, associations, sports clubs and schools use this method to share their luck. In La Bola de Cristal, in the lottery administration number 35 in Gijón, we make it very easy. We take care of everything.