Cashola

Cashola, stylized Ca$hola, was a video lottery game offered by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) from July 2006 to May 2011. Cashola was the first US multi-jurisdictional video lottery game.

Cashola was played on linked machines at nine lottery-run casinos; three in Delaware, two in Rhode Island, and four in West Virginia. The minimum jackpot was $250,000; it was paid in 30 annual installments, unless the winner chose the cash option within 60 days of winning. The progressive jackpot exceeded $4 million (annuity) for the first time on November 4, 2009. The first 27 jackpot winners (unlike traditional lottery jackpot games, the grand prize could not be split by multiple players, as each Cashola machine was independent); as of February 2, 2009, all 27 chose the cash option. The largest Cashola jackpot, of $4,918,605.91, was won on November 26, 2009, in Charles Town, West Virginia.

To win the jackpot, the maximum amount of $2.25 must have been wagered for that spin. The themes for the Cashola slots varied by machine (e.g. Kingdom of Pharaohs, The Big Easy.) The minimum denomination also differed (there were penny, nickel, and quarter Cashola machines.) Each Cashola machine had five "reels"; for a jackpot to be won, in addition to the maximum wager, the gold-colored "Ca$hola" symbol must have appeared on each of the five "reels" in any of the lines the player "purchased" in that spin (the "Cashola" symbol appearing on each reel did not guarantee a jackpot win.)