Why Spain's 'El Gordo' Lottery Made One Girl Cry

Spaniards are cashing in on nearly $3 billion after winners were announced for "El Gordo," the biggest lottery in the world.

Children sang the winning numbers today during a live announcement from Madrid's Royal Theatre, a tradition of the annual Christmas lottery.

With that much cash at stake, one girl was so anxious she was even brought to tears on stage -- but the crowd responded by clapping, urging her to go on.

"El Gordo" -- which translates to "the fat one" in Spanish -- has thousands of winners across the country, and no one person can win the entire jackpot.

More than 100 of the top winning tickets were sold in a downtown Madrid neighborhood, while 20 were purchased in the city of Cadiz and many more in other cities across Spain. It's not clear yet how many winning tickets were sold.

Tickets cost between $23 and $25.

The country was glued to their TVs today as the awards were announced during a four-hour program.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.