Norway lottery firm sorry for mistakenly informing 47,000 winners

Norwegian Lottery Apologizes After False Win Notifications Sent to Thousands

Norwegian lottery officials have issued an apology to tens of thousands of players who were incorrectly informed they had won large prizes due to a technical error.

Norsk Tipping, the state-run gambling operator, initially acknowledged that “several thousand” people were mistakenly told on Friday they had won significant sums after a miscalculation in converting the prize from euros to Norwegian kroner. However, it was only on Monday—three days later—that an apology was sent via text message to 47,000 affected individuals.

“Many Norwegians were wrongly notified that they had won a major Eurojackpot prize. This was a widespread mistake, and we are addressing it with the utmost seriousness,” wrote Norsk Tipping’s managing director, Vegar Strand, in the message.

“We deeply regret what happened and sincerely apologize to all those impacted. We are truly sorry for the disappointment caused.”

Among those who received the erroneous notification was Ole Fredrik Sveen, 53, who was vacationing in Greece when he was told he had won 1.2 million NOK (£86,650). It was later revealed his actual winnings were just 125 NOK (£9).

“At first, you’re overjoyed by the news of a big win,” he said. However, the excitement was brief for the culinary instructor from near Oslo. After growing suspicious within 15 minutes, he checked Norwegian news outlets and found that many others had received similar false notifications.

“It could have been disastrous—someone might have spent a lot of money before realizing the mistake. Fortunately, we stayed calm and understood this wasn’t our time,” Sveen said.

Despite the disappointment, Sveen said he would still celebrate his modest win. “It’s not enough for champagne—maybe a glass of prosecco or crémant instead,” he joked.

Norsk Tipping has faced criticism from both players and regulators for the incident. Sveen admitted he had lost trust in the lottery and would reconsider future participation.

Norway’s gambling oversight body has initiated a review to determine if any regulations were violated. The country’s culture minister, Lubna Jaffery, called the error “completely unacceptable.”

Norsk Tipping and the culture ministry have yet to provide further comments.

In his message to players, Strand stated that the company was “working diligently” to prevent such mistakes in the future. Meanwhile, Norsk Tipping’s chief executive announced over the weekend that she would resign.