WHY you should absolutely play Friday PowerBall XTRA this week

First things first, Friday PowerBall XTRA on 28 August 2026 is worth R22 million. Even after last Friday’s R95-million payout, that’s a decent sum of money for the guaranteed cascade.

While the straight, non-cascading PowerBall is playing for just R12 million. A reminder that this figure is not subject to the trickle-down cascade system like XTRA …

FRIDAY POWERBALL XTRA 28 AUGUST 2026

Ahead of Friday PowerBall XTRA on 28 August 2026, there have been six rollovers of the smaller pot. Early in the month of August there were two meagre wins which reset winnings.

Likewise, ahead of the big R95-million payout to a lone player in Soweto, the big PowerBall had rolled over for six-and-a-half weeks (13 games), since Tuesday 3 July 2026.

Nevertheless, what are your chances of a split jackpot for Friday PowerBall XTRA on 28 August 2026? On the eighth and final draw of each month, the jackpot rolls down, so a winner is guaranteed. Therefore, if there is no Division 1 winner, Sizekhaya forces the money down to Division 2 instead of rolling over again.

As such, based on the PowerBall matrix used since Sizekhaya’s 1 June 2026 takeover, your odds of splitting the R22 million for PowerBall XTRA on 28 August 2026 are:

• Five numbers plus PowerBall (Division 1): 1 in 33 900 160
• Five numbers only (Division 2): 1 in 2 260 011
• Four numbers plus PowerBall (Division 3): 1 in 150 667
• Four numbers only (Division 4): 1 in 10 045
• Three numbers plus PowerBall (Division 5): 1 in 3 424
• Three numbers only (Division 6): 1 in 228

DON’T FORGET TO PURCHASE POWERBALL XTRA THIS FRIDAY

If you’re new to the game, Friday PowerBall XTRA involves choosing five main numbers from 1 to 50, plus one PowerBall number drawn from 1 to 16. Both straight PowerBall and PowerBall XTRA use the same numbers, so no need to choose twice. A standard PowerBall board now costs R10 and PowerBall XTRA costs R5 per board. You cannot play PowerBall XTRA only, so you’ll have to part with R15 total.

As ever, tickets are sold at authorised National Lottery retailers. You can also enter via participating banking apps, including FNB, Capitec, Standard Bank, ABSA and Nedbank. The largest percentage of winners do come from the banking apps, purely due to the ease and convenience of the medium. However, note that some banking apps force a minimum purchase of two boards per ticket, effectively doubling the entry cost. Players must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

DRAW TIMES AND CLAIMING POWERBALL WINNINGS

PowerBall and PowerBall XTRA draw every Tuesday and Tuesday at 21:00. Sizekhaya brought back live televised draws using physical draw machines. Ticket sales cut off before the draw typically at 20:30, half an hour before the draw. All PowerBall prizes must be claimed within 365 days of the draw date. Anyone who misses that window forfeits their prize and the money is transferred to the National Lottery Distribution Trust for charitable causes.

How and where to claim Friday PowerBall XTRA winnings depends on the amount won:

• Small prizes (up to R4 999) get paid out directly at licensed retailers.
• Mid-tier prizes (R5 000 to R49 999) can be claimed at selected partner banks.
• Online and banking-app players have prizes up to R249 999 deposited automatically into their accounts.
• And anything above R49 999 (none banking app) requires an in-person visit to a Sizekhaya regional office, with the original ticket and a valid South African ID.

Anyone unsure where to start can call the Sizekhaya helpline on 0861 026 000.

And one final note, around R257 million in lottery prizes currently sits unclaimed across South Africa from the previous operator. Therefore, checking old ticket numbers against those drawn (up to one year ago) costs you nothing and might just turn up forgotten money. You can do so by clicking past results HERE.