Long queue for 'El Gordo' lottery tickets in Spain

Hopeful punters were queuing for over an hour on Wednesday to buy the last few tickets for Spain´s celebrated Christmas lottery known as "El Gordo" or "The Fat One".

Over an estimated $2.7 billion is up for grabs with hundreds of prizes spread over thousands of numbers. The top-prize is 450,000 US Dollars or after taxes 370,000 US Dollars. People line up for hours in the days running up to the lottery to snatch their 23 US Dollar tickets from the most popular vendors. The lottery is run by the state and supports several charities.