Powerball Ticket in Illinois Wins $1.04 Billion Jackpot

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NTD Television — Powerball tickets rest on a 7-Eleven store register in Chicago, Ill., on Jan. 9, 2016. (Joshua Lott/Getty Images)

Someone who bought a Powerball ticket in Illinois is now a billionaire after a single ticket sold in the state matched all six numbers in Wednesday night’s drawing to win a $1.04 billion jackpot.

The jackpot-winning ticket was sold at Hy-Vee Gas No. 1534, located at 310 N. 36th St. in Quincy, Illinois, according to the Illinois Lottery. The winner had not been publicly identified as of Thursday morning.

The winning numbers were 4, 26, 66, 67, and 69, with a red Powerball of 9. The Power Play multiplier was 2.

The winner has the choice to receive either the full $1.04 billion through 30 payments over 29 years or take a one-time payment of $450.5 million. Both amounts are before taxes.

“Congratulations to our newest Powerball jackpot winner in Illinois,” Stephen Durrell, chair of the Powerball Product Group and executive director of the Kansas Lottery, said in a statement on Aug. 13.

The prize is the largest Powerball jackpot won in 2026 and the eighth-largest in the game’s history. Wednesday’s drawing ended a long run of 44 drawings without a jackpot winner. The last winning jackpot was split by two tickets sold in Florida and Texas on May 2.

Additionally, more than 3 million tickets won smaller prizes on Wednesday. Tickets sold in Arizona, California, Florida, and North Carolina matched all five white balls. Those tickets are worth $1 million, although California determines prizes based on sales and the number of winners. A Massachusetts ticket added Power Play and won $2 million.

The Illinois winner has one year from the Aug. 12 drawing to claim the jackpot. Illinois law allows lottery winners to remain anonymous. Winners of at least $250,000 may request that the Illinois Lottery keep their name and hometown confidential, the lottery said.

The request for anonymity must be made when the prize is claimed. If not, the lottery typically releases the winner’s name, hometown, and prize amount.

The Illinois winner joins several people who recently claimed record prizes. An Arkansas player won a $1.817 billion Christmas Eve jackpot at the end of 2025, and later chose the $834.9 million cash payment. The player remained anonymous. That prize is the second-largest in U.S. lottery history.

Two tickets in Missouri and Texas split a $1.787 billion jackpot in September. The Missouri winner remained anonymous. Seven Bridges Revocable Trust claimed the Texas share and received about $410.3 million before taxes after choosing cash.

The U.S. lottery record remains a $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot won by Edwin Castro in California in November 2022. He chose a $997.6 million cash payment.

Saturday’s Powerball jackpot resets to an estimated $20 million.

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