The Government has approved the exclusive concession by Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa for the running of a new Eurolottery, a game that does not encourage addictive behaviour among the population according to the government. In practice, this is a draw where there is no single prize, but rather a monthly instalment that will be paid over several years.

"Lisbon's Santa Casa da Misericórdia will be operated on an exclusive basis throughout the national territory. It is a game decided at European level, within the framework of the 20th anniversary of the Euromillions", highlighted the Secretary of State for the Presidency, André Moz Caldas.

According to the executive diploma, the new game will be explored together with other European countries and, according to the Secretary of State for the Presidency, its model "has details that will be announced at a later date".

André Moz Caldas sought above all to rule out the existence of possible harmful consequences in terms of social behaviour and also rejected the thesis that this new game is aimed at younger people.

"We are launching a game that does not have an instant prize and is therefore different from the type of games that have recently been associated with addictive behaviour. What the Government has approved is not necessarily aimed at younger populations", he argued.

On the Government's part, it is argued that the new lottery could be a way of combating the illegal offering of this type of draw, diversifying and updating the game offer.

The new European lottery, called Eurodreams, will bring together more than eight European countries and aims to be the biggest European lottery since the launch of EuroMillions almost 20 years ago.

Instead of a fixed prize paid in full, whoever wins the new lottery will receive a monthly instalment paid over several years. The first prize, for example, will entitle you to 20 thousand euros per month for 30 years.

According to the Público newspaper, the first draw is expected to take place on November 6, with two draws per week expected: on Mondays and Thursdays in Portugal and eight other European countries, the same ones where EuroMillions is played.