A ticket check at a pharmacy, and an attendant with an astonished look on her face. Kamel Arezki asked if there was a problem. There wasn't. He had just learned that he held a share of the winning Lotto Max ticket from the July 10, 2026 draw, a C$25 million jackpot that Loto-Québec says went to nine players in Quebec.
How nine players came to share one ticket
The win came through Formule groupe, Loto-Québec's way of playing as a group. The operator describes the idea simply: each member buys one or more shares and combines them with those of the other participants, and together they share the excitement, the anticipation and any winnings.
This group was created at Dépanneur Saint-Maxime, a convenience store in the Chomedey area of Laval, and Loto-Québec notes that it was made up of mostly the same people over the years. The store sold all 10 shares of the winning Formule groupe ticket.
Eight members of the group won C$2.5 million each. Thierno M. Sadigou Diallo had bought two shares of the group play, which made his prize C$5 million. According to Loto-Québec, he was amazed when he saw all those zeros, and he plans to buy a property for his family and make some investments.
How the news reached them
Several of the winners heard it at the store itself. Loto-Québec says the retailer was thrilled to share the news with a number of them, and Paul Émile Denis was stunned to be told he had won. Gabriel Aouad also found out at the convenience store and felt the excitement as soon as he arrived, with group members hugging and congratulating each other.
Djelloul Saidi's way into the group was entirely unplanned. A mechanical problem with his car made him stop in front of the store, his first-ever visit there, and he used the unscheduled stop to buy a share of the group play before going on his way. He put it down to chance. That share came to C$2.5 million. Loto-Québec says he hadn't yet told his spouse, because he wanted to surprise her at work with the cheque in hand.
Kamel Arezki, meanwhile, already knows one thing he wants to do. Described by Loto-Québec as a family man, he wants to travel: he hasn't seen the beach in a long time, he says, and the trip is definitely happening.
Little of this Lotto Max story belongs to any one person. By Loto-Québec's account, the winners got together to celebrate receiving their prize. Élie Sawan, quoted in the operator's announcement, put the feeling plainly. He said he was happy they won as a group, that he liked people and liked it when they were happy, and that he didn't want to be happy by himself.
A Lotto Max jackpot is a genuine long shot and every draw is random; playing as a group changes how a prize is shared, not how the numbers are drawn. You can see the full results for the July 10 draw, and the Lotto Max hub carries the latest results.
Whatever comes next for each of them, whether a property, a long-awaited beach or a surprise for a spouse at work, the win began as something shared, and that is how they celebrated it.
Play for fun, within a budget you set in advance. If gambling has stopped being fun, support is available through the problem gambling helpline for your province or territory — the Responsible Gambling Council lists every one on its Help for Canadians page.
Always confirm winning numbers, prize amounts, and deadlines with the official operator before acting on a ticket — the operator's published results are the only ones that count.
Sources
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Loto-Québec, July 23, 2026 — 25 000 000 $ au Lotto Max – Neuf personnes deviennent millionnaires en même temps
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Loto-Québec via Newswire.ca, July 23, 2026 — $25,000,000 with Lotto Max - Nine new millionaires at the same time
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Loto-Québec via Newswire.ca (as republished by The Globe and Mail), July 11, 2026 — Lotto Max - $25 million jackpot won in Québec
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Loto-Québec — Play as a group
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Yahoo News Canada (Leticia Gaba), September 29, 2026 — Lotto Max players share jackpot after buying into store's group ticket
