Powerball goes global today with its official U.K. debut

Powerball is officially international. Beginning today, Tuesday, July 21, lottery players across the United Kingdom can purchase Powerball tickets for the first time. This marks one of the biggest expansions in the game's history. The launch comes through a partnership between the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) and Allwyn UK, which operates the National Lottery.

While U.S. players won't notice any immediate changes, today's launch introduces millions of potential new players to the game and could eventually help Powerball jackpots climb even faster. Here's what players on both sides of the Atlantic should know.

U.S. players won't notice many changes

On the United States side of things, Powerball players won't notice any changes with this expansion. Drawings will remain on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday nights at 10:59 p.m. ET.

The cost of tickets will remain $2 in most jurisdictions, or $3 in Idaho and Montana, because Power Play is included. The odds of winning each prize level remain unchanged.

For Powerball players in the United States, the biggest potential impact won't be seen right away. Now that the U.K. will be selling tickets, overall sales could increase over time. With more ticket sales, that typically means jackpots can grow more quickly when no one wins the top prize.

That right there is one of the main reasons why lottery officials have been excited about this expansion.

A few key differences for the U.K. version

While the game itself will use the same numbers and drawings, the U.K. version won't be identical. Tickets will cost £4 in the United Kingdom, which is about $5 based on current exchange rates.

In addition, U.K. players will have an additional prize tier that won't be available to players in the United States. In the U.K., matching two white balls wins £8, giving players another way to collect a prize.

We will also see other prize amounts differing from the United States version. They range from £11.90 up to £1,000,000, which would be $10.40 up to $1.3 million in U.S. dollars.

One major difference for jackpot winners

The biggest difference between the U.K. and the U.S. may take place when someone wins the jackpot.

For U.S. players, when someone wins the jackpot, they get to choose between a lump-sum cash option and the advertised jackpot amount paid out over 30 years. For American winners, the majority choose the cash option.

For U.K. players, they won't have this choice. Anyone who wins the jackpot in the U.K. will automatically receive the jackpot as a 30-year annuity. Lottery officials in the U.K. state that this promotes long-term financial security.

If there happen to be multiple winning tickets sold, whether they're in the U.S., U.K., or both, the jackpot will be split equally among the winners, just as it is today.

The first U.K. drawing is coming soon

As of today, U.K. players can officially start purchasing Powerball tickets.

The first drawing available to U.K. players will take place on Wednesday, July 22. Of course, this will be the same drawing that players across the United States are already participating in.

Whether the addition of millions of new U.K. players leads to noticeably bigger jackpots remains to be seen. However, one thing is certain: starting today, Powerball is no longer just America's biggest lottery game; it's officially gone global.

Enjoy playing the lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.