The realization came late at night, in the quiet of her Dubai home, when Zenn Ariane Garceles opened her The UAE Lottery account and found a message she could barely process. In an interview with TGFM, the 38-year-old from the Philippines recalled turning to the one person beside her to make sure she wasn’t imagining the figure on her screen.
“I couldn’t believe the amount I was looking at. I immediately asked my husband to look at it with me. I asked him to confirm how many zeroes there were, and he said six. So it was five million that I won,” she told TGFM. The couple needed time before the reality of AED 5 million truly sank in.
Her win with The UAE Lottery makes her the operator’s first female millionaire, a milestone that came through the Lucky Day Draw. The draw takes place every Wednesday and Saturday, offering a AED 30 million Grand Prize along with a AED 5 million Second Prize and other tiers. Every game runs under the oversight of the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, which regulates the operator’s activities across the country.
Garceles has spent 13 years in Dubai, arriving from the Philippines to work as a dental assistant. She has since stepped away from that job, choosing to focus on her family and to support her sister’s education back home. The UAE, she said, is where the major chapters of her adult life have unfolded, including meeting her husband and raising their children.
Her connection to The UAE Lottery began long before her name was tied to any prize. She had followed it from around the time it launched, drawn in by the accounts of past winners. That interest eventually moved her to enter the draws herself, and she has kept playing since.
When the win finally came, her husband was the first to share in it, standing with her as she confirmed the numbers. Her thoughts then went to her father in the Philippines. His reaction, she said, carried a quiet certainty. He wasn’t caught off guard at all and felt, deep down, that this outcome had been coming for her.
Looking ahead, Garceles is measured about what the money will mean. She intends to handle it carefully, with her children’s education at the top of her priorities and a possible business venture on the horizon for her and her husband. High on her list is bringing relatives over from the Philippines so the family can spend time together in Dubai.
She closed the conversation with a note of caution for others hoping for a similar turn of fortune. “I would say enjoy the experience and always participate responsibly. Winning AED 5 million was an incredible moment for me and my family, but I think it’s important to always be sensible when taking part. Know what you are comfortable spending and don’t go beyond your limit.”
