But for some lucky punters, that dream has become reality.
Today, I’m going to run through the list of the most amazing, most controversial and biggest casino wins in history. You’ll discover who the winners were, where they won their jackpots, what games they played and, of course, how much they won.
Be warned! Some of the jackpots are simply staggering, so I suggest you read this sitting down…
$1.6 Million Won While Playing a Penny Slot
A lucky player known as Robert S struck it lucky at the Valley View Casino in California in 2014, scooping a massive $1.6 Million payout.
It’s a life changing sum, but nowhere near the biggest amount ever won. What makes it extra special though is that he won playing a penny slot, one that costs just 1c per spin.
The game in question was Wheel of Fortune Ultra Wheels. I can’t think of many better returns on a $0.01 investment in history! Well played Robert.
£1.7 Million Finally Paid Out After a High Court Battle
This controversial story made the national news in the UK in 2021. Not because of the amount won, although it is a very large sum, but because the bookmaker, Betfred, refused to pay out.
When punter Andy Green won £1.7 Million playing a mobile blackjack game, it should have been the best day of his life, but it was actually the start of a three year battle to get his hands on his winnings.
Betfred claimed that a “software glitch” meant that the win was void. But Green stood up for himself and took the bookmaker all the way to the high court, who ordered Betfred to pay up.
I feel like this is a win for punters everywhere, and sets a very useful precedent to stop bookies and casinos hiding behind small print in the future. Nice one Andy, enjoy your winnings.
$2.9 Million Record Win at Empire City Casino
In 2018 a player known as Theresa P landed the biggest win ever seen at the famous Empire City Casino, near New York.
The exact amount she won was $2,919,162.81, thanks to a bet of just $20 on the Wheel of Fortune Triple Stars slot machine.
Theresa took just 8 spins to win the jackpot. Not even enough time to catch the attention of the cocktail waitress and get a free drink. Although after this she could probably afford to buy her own.
4.2 Million Euros on Empire Fortune Slot
In May 2020, games developer Yggdrasil announced that a player had won over 4 million Euros playing its online progressive slot game, Empire Fortune.
Absolutely no details were given about the winner, we don’t even know whether they were playing on mobile, desktop or tablet. But well played to whoever it was, and it just goes to show that other progressives apart from the “Megas” can offer life changing wins as well.
$4.9 Million Jackpot Win on Mega Moolah
This is the first but certainly not the last entry on this list for the online progressive jackpot slot Mega Moolah. It’s fair to say that this game is quite aptly named, given the number of multi millionaires it’s created.
This win came in December 2019, when a player (who chose to remain anonymous) won a cash prize of $4,968,704.
Amazingly, as we’ll see later, this was nowhere near the record win for this game. But I’m sure Ms Anonymous won’t have cared too much about that.
Over £5 Million Won on Beach Life Slot – Thanks to a Noisy Dog
Another big jackpot won by an online player at Betfred, and this time they did pay out without a fuss!
Back in 2012, a punter in Ayrshire, Scotland was woken by the sound of his neighbour’s dog barking.
Unable to get back to sleep, he decided to stake £1 on the Beach Life online slot game. A few spins later, and he’d turned that one pound stake into a mind blowing £5.1 Million jackpot win.
The dog should take most of the credit though, so hopefully he bought him a bone to say thanks.
£6.2 Million Jackpot on Mega Fortune
A Welsh player known as Wellzyc smashed the Mega Fortune online slot in December 2016, winning a cool £6,235,372.42 from a bet of just £1.25.
The player described his feelings as “shock and disbelief” when he saw the message telling him how much he’d won. Fair enough, I’m sure most of us would probably react exactly the same if we saw our entire lives change on a single spin of the reels.
No doubt it was a very Merry Christmas in one corner of Wales that year. The first thing the winner planned was to take his family to Disneyland, another place where dreams come true
6.6 Million Euros on Mega Moolah
No surprise to see the Mega Moolah slot make another appearance. This win came in 2917 when the jackpot had climbed to an impressive 6,681,487 Euros.
That’s when a player known only as CF walked away with it while playing the game on a mobile slots app.
It’s still not even close to the record though, as you’re about to find out…
7.7 Million Euros on Atlantean Treasures: Mega Moolah
Here’s yet another massive jackpot win on Mega Moolah, which is undoubtedly the online slot that has produced the most big winners in history.
There are a few different versions of the game around, and this win came via the Atlantean Treasures: Mega Moolah variation, the first big jackpot won through that particular release.
The €7,784,425.63 jackpot win came on May 8th 2020, at the famous old River Belle casino, (which was actually one of the first online casinos I ever played at back in around 2002).
No details were given about the winner in this case, all I can tell you is that, sadly, it wasn’t me.
10.7 Million Euros on Mega Moolah
Microgaming certainly is onto a good thing with their Mega Moolah slots. We’re now into the tens of millions, with this €10,735,716.84 prize won by an anonymous player at Jackpot City in April 2020.
But was this the biggest ever win on this slot? (Hint: no, not even close!)
Read on to find out which jackpots beat it…
The $15.5 Million Slot Jackpot Won On Christmas Eve
2020 may have been a pretty miserable year for most people, but it certainly ended well for Kevin, who decided to spend his Christmas Eve in the Suncoast Hotel in Las Vegas.
While there, Kevin decided to put $40 into the Megabucks Slot machine. This proved to be a smart move, as minutes later he hit the jackpot and won $15,491,103, the largest win in Vegas in over 8 years!
🚨 MEGABUCKS JACKPOT ALERT! 🚨
Congratulations to Kevin for hitting the $15,491,103 Megabucks Progressive Jackpot at @suncoastcasino!#SuncoastCasino #BConnectedWinners #Megabucks #Jackpot #MegabucksJackpot #LasVegasJackpots pic.twitter.com/88t1Ty3S3A
— Suncoast Casino (@suncoastcasino) December 25, 2020
A novelty cheque so big you can actually hide behind it? That’s definitely a nice way to see in the new year.
£13.2 Million Won on Mega Moolah – From a 25p stake
A British Soldier from Cheshire hit the headlines in October 2015 when he won a £13,213,838.68 jackpot from just a 25p stake. He was playing, yes you guessed it, Mega Moolah!
Unusually, the winner was happy to be named and to accept the publicity, which was one of the reasons why John Heywood is one of the most famous slot players of all time.
The other reason is of course the sheer amount that John won.
At the time, this set the world record for the largest ever win on an online slot machine. But records are there to be broken…
18.9 Million Euros – Biggest Online Slot Win Of All Time
John Heywood’s previous record win was broken on Friday 28 September 2018 at Grand Mondial Casino, by an online player who chose to remain anonymous.
The game? Mega Moolah, of course!
While playing the slot on an Android mobile device, the lucky player took a 75c spin and came away with a world record jackpot win of €18,915,872.81.
Like all Microgaming jackpots, the entire amount was paid out as one lump sum, not in instalments.
This remains the largest ever single win at an online casino to this day.
Nearly $35 Million Won In Las Vegas
Back in January 2000, when online casinos were still in their infancy, the Desert Resort in Las Vegas witnessed one of the biggest casino wins ever.
The previous world record was smashed when a local woman won a staggering $34,955,489.56 on the Nevada Megabucks slot.
The winner chose to remain anonymous.
Winners of the Megabucks slot get paid in instalments over a 25 year period, meaning that this lucky lady has been enjoying annual payments of $1,402,188.58 ever since.
I wonder if she’ll have to go back to work when they stop?
$39,713,982.25 – The Biggest Casino Win In History
The biggest ever casino win came at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas strip in March 2003.
Close to 40 Million Dollars was won on a single spin.
A software engineer from Los Angeles, who chose to keep his name private, won this jaw dropping sum while playing the Megabucks slot machine on the casino floor.
According to IGT:
He said he’d played about $100 on the machine when he turned his head away from it for an instant. When he looked at the machine again, the winning symbols had lined up.
It’s hard to imagine what that feels like, but I’d love to find out!
Will this record win ever be beaten? It’s highly likely that it will. But when, where and by whom? That all remains to be seen….
The Final Word
Gambling may be a mugs game to some people, but try telling that to the winners you’ve just heard about.
You don’t have to be a professional gambler or have inside knowledge to win big. Some of the biggest payouts in history have come from casual players staking just a few pounds, dollars or euros.
Nobody’s suggesting that playing online slots or casino games is a fast path to riches. That’s definitely not the case. Most of us play for fun, we bet only what we can afford, and we don’t expect to win much.
But it just goes to show that for some punters, if the stars are aligned and lady luck is smiling on them, dreams really can come true.
Last Updated on April 9, 2021
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