This Reporter Quit Her Job Live on Air After Winning Just $5,000 in the Lottery

Not all lottery wins are created equal. Spanish TV reporter Natalia Escudero learned that the hard way after realizing the lottery win that reportedly prompted her to quit her job on live television was only worth about $5,000.

Escudero was covering Spain’s annual Christmas lottery, called El Gordo (The Fat One), on Sunday when she discovered she herself was a winner, the Washington Post reported.

“I’m not going in tomorrow,” she said upon making the discovery. “Natalia doesn’t work tomorrow. Woo!”

Escudero continued to celebrate on air, repeating the winning lottery number and pulling the woman who had sold her the winning ticket in for a kiss.

Aquí la tienes: "la reportera de La 1" de la que habla todo el mundo a estas horas. ¡Se llama Natalia Escudero! #LoteríaRTVE

🔴 Directo ➡ https://t.co/pfgTOQpaaN pic.twitter.com/58j3ACuNte

— TVE (@tve_tve) December 22, 2019

Unfortunately, Escudero would later learn that her share of the winnings amounted to a mere 5,000 euros, or about or about $5,500.

According to the Sun, Spanish lottery tickets cost 200 euros, and players can purchase a 10th of a full ticket for just 20 euros. This is the kind of ticket Escudero purchased, meaning her winning number was only worth a 10th of a full ticket’s share of the 2.24 billion euro prize.

Escudero later clarified her winnings in a subsequent clip, explaining that she had only taken home a “pinch” of the prize money. The reporter also tweeted an apology after viewers accused her of putting on an unprofessional display and lying about her winnings.

Hola a tod@s, sirva este tweet para primero pedir disculpas a cualquier espectador que hoy se haya sentido engañado por una servidora , al afirmar en directo que me había tocado el Gordo de Navidad en el programa LA MAÑANA. Es cierto que me ha invadido la emoción y ahora explico

— natalia escudero (@nataliescudero1) December 22, 2019