Dubai: French-Tunisian national Hamdi, an avid football fan, has scored the biggest goal of his life: Winning Dh10 million during the 56th weekly draw of Mahzooz!
He matched five out of the five winning numbers (8, 13, 21, 31 and 47). However, he would not have hit the grand prize had he not made a last-minute change to his choice of the final number. “I picked a few numbers without much thought and replaced 48 with 47, when I recollected that 48 was one of previous week’s winning numbers,” explained the 38-year old Abu Dhabi resident who works as a TV producer.
The timely change of heart made him Mahzooz’s 20th millionaire this year. The 56th Mahzooz draw also saw 36 other winners share the second prize of Dh1 million while 1,282 winners got the third prize of Dh350 each. Additionally, three winners took home Dh100,000 each in the weekly raffle draw.
Winning of a lifetime
While the live draw on Saturday that changed Hamdi’s life was unfolding, the die-hard football fan was engrossed watching a match. He was even upset after his team lost. He came to know of his big win only when he checked his email after the match.
Hamdi recalled: “I was disappointed and outraged as my team lost the match. But when I opened the email and realised I had won Dh10 million, I was speechless. I had scored the winning goal of a lifetime! I closed and opened my Mahzooz app multiple times to confirm I had actually won.”
The father of two said he was still “grappling with the enormity of his win”, and didn’t have any concrete plans. However, he was quite sure that most of his prize purse would go towards securing his children’s future.
“My boys aged five and one are my priority. The first thing I did after winning was to kiss both of them. My wife and I will now carefully draw up a plan to invest this money wisely. Fancy cars and houses aren’t my cup of tea,” Hamdi added.
Passion for profession
Despite his big win, Hamdi said he would continue with his profession. “You can give me all the money in the world, and I still wouldn’t quit my job. I love being a TV producer — it’s hard work and requires me to travel a lot, but I enjoy this field. I’ll probably use part of my winning to finance some special media projects,” he said.
The self-confessed foodie said those projects might centre around food. He said: “I love cooking, so I’ve always dreamt of launching a food channel on YouTube, or opening a small restaurant, or going on a culinary tour of the world and documenting it. I’m blessed that Mahzooz has given me the opportunity to fulfil my responsibilities towards my family, without having to sacrifice my personal goals. I will also spread my blessings by donating to charities and those in need.”
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‘Life is a beautiful game’
Hamdi compared life with football, saying: “Life is a beautiful game, which is all about right timing. When I came to the UAE nine years ago, I had 30 days to find a job and didn’t find anything until the 29th day. But I didn’t give up. Today, the UAE is my home and I’m prosperous beyond imagination. I’m so grateful to this country and to Mahzooz.”
How to join the Mahzooz draw?
The next Mahzooz live draw will be held on Saturday, December 25, at 9pm (UAE time). Participants can register on the Mahzooz app and also on its website.
