The next Irish Lotto draw takes place on Friday, 26 September 2026 at 8:00 pm Irish time, with players chasing a jackpot currently sitting at €4.2m. Before ticket buyers pick their numbers, it's worth glancing back at the most recent lottery results and what they reveal about various number-selection approaches.
In the 23 September 2026 draw, the winning numbers were 2, 12, 17, 26, 30, and 37, with 10 as the bonus ball. No single ticket matched all six, but the draw offered a useful dataset for comparing lottery strategies. Using our strategy tracker, we ran 54 tickets across nine different picking methods, six tickets per method, and measured how each performed against the actual winning numbers.
The standout performer this round was the "cold_pick" method, which selects numbers that haven't appeared recently. It posted the highest average of 1.5 matched numbers per ticket, with a best result of 2 matches. Close behind was the "delta" method — which builds numbers from gaps between previous draws — averaging 1.3 matches, also topping out at 2. Interestingly, "balanced_sum," a method that aims for statistically typical number-sum totals, had a lower average (0.5) but still produced the single best individual result of the night: 3 matched numbers on one ticket.
Meanwhile, more conventional approaches like "random" and "weighted" selection lagged behind, averaging just 0.5 matches each. This is a notable observation for anyone interested in lottery statistics: methods that deliberately avoid frequently-drawn numbers or track numerical gaps slightly outperformed pure randomness in this particular draw. It's important to stress this is a one-draw observation, not a predictive pattern — Irish Lotto draws are independent random events, and no strategy can reliably forecast winning numbers. Past performance of any method, including cold_pick's strong showing here, doesn't guarantee future results.
Still, these comparisons offer a fascinating lens into how different lottery predictions strategies behave over time when tracked consistently. For number enthusiasts and casual players alike, understanding these patterns adds an extra layer of engagement to the game, even if the fundamental odds remain unchanged.
With the jackpot holding at €4.2m for Friday's draw, interest is likely to stay high. Whether you stick with your lucky numbers, follow the cold_pick approach, or try something entirely different, remember that responsible play matters more than any system.
Curious how your own number-picking strategy would have fared against recent Irish Lotto results? You can build, backtest, and compare your own methods using real historical draws at strategy-tracker.lawley.de.