Last Updated on January 13, 2026 by Brian Kachejian
My recent experience with Chick-fil-A’s Golden Cup contest got me thinking about all the lottery-style promotions fast food chains have used to pull people through their doors. These are not just giveaways or marketing stunts. They are carefully designed games built around anticipation, scarcity, and the thrill of possibly winning something more than a meal. And when you start talking about this kind of food-driven psychology, there is no place to begin other than with McDonald’s.
This piece launches a new series focused on the psychology of food, how promotions work on us, why we keep coming back, and what these contests reveal about the way we think. It is fascinating, occasionally uncomfortable, and a little bit scary once you realize how effective it all is.
McDonald’s Monopoly and the Psychology of Chasing a Winning Piece
McDonald’s Monopoly promotion first launched in 1987 in the United States and has continued in various forms for more than three decades, returning annually as one of the restaurant chain’s most well-known marketing campaigns. The game parallels the classic board game Monopoly, in which players collect pieces representing properties, utilities, and railroads in pursuit of matching sets that correspond to prizes offered by McDonald’s and its promotional partners. Despite odds that favor non-winning outcomes, millions of customers participate each year, driven in part by the chance to win cash, free menu items, and other rewards tied to the pieces they collect. Over time, McDonald’s Monopoly became a cultural ritual, turning everyday fast-food purchases into something that felt interactive and more significant than the meal itself. I am writing about this with passion because I am one of those customers who get hooked on games like these very easily.
At the core of the promotion is a system built on scarcity and selective distribution. Certain property pieces, such as Boardwalk and Park Place in the McDonald’s version, are produced in very limited quantities and randomly inserted into packaging at restaurants across the chain. Other pieces, like the more common properties, are printed in large numbers and distributed widely. When customers receive a rare piece, it creates a moment of excitement and possibility that goes beyond the value of the food they ordered. Even though the odds of assembling a full set of rare pieces are extremely low, the possibility of doing so keeps customers coming back, hoping that this time they might be the lucky ones.
I remember playing Monopoly growing up, usually when the lights went out, on a boring vacation, or when there was just simply nothing to do. The use of this game brings back fond memories for many people.
The promotion generally runs for several weeks each year, with specific start and end dates announced by McDonald’s in advance. During the game period, McDonald’s distributes millions of game pieces that are printed on food packaging and promotional materials. Customers receive pieces when they purchase qualifying menu items during the promotional window. Prizes for winning combinations traditionally include free food items, gift cards, cash prizes, and sponsored rewards from participating partners. While the exact prize structure changes from year to year, the overarching model remains consistent: run the game for a limited time, create urgency, and get customers to revisit restaurants frequently.
From a psychological perspective, a critical element of McDonald’s Monopoly is the concept of the “near miss.” Behavioral research shows that near misses, where someone collects many common pieces but not the rare ones needed to complete a winning set, can be more motivating than straightforward losses. People tend to interpret near misses as evidence that success was almost achieved, which encourages repeat attempts in the hope that the next attempt will yield a better result. With McDonald’s Monopoly, customers often accumulate large numbers of common pieces and feel they are “almost there,” even though the overall odds of success have not changed. That sense of being close to a win, even if technically inaccurate, compels people to continue buying qualifying items.
The ritual of collecting and checking game pieces also plays into sustained engagement. Participants peel stickers, match them against charts of winning combinations, and sometimes scan codes for digital entry. This physical interaction with promotional material slows down what would otherwise be an ordinary transaction and adds a dimension of participation and anticipation. In stores or online, people compare pieces with friends and family, hoping that someone in their circle might hold a rare piece. These social elements reinforce participation, as customers not only chase prizes for themselves but also trade and communicate about their progress.
Another factor driving ongoing involvement is frequency and integration into routine behavior. McDonald’s is an established part of many people’s meal habits, and Monopoly does not require customers to break those habits. A morning coffee run, afternoon snack purchase, or regular lunch order becomes an opportunity to receive game pieces, even if winning is unlikely. Because many participants are already visiting McDonald’s, the additional cost of a qualifying purchase often feels minimal or justified by the potential reward. This lowers resistance to continued participation and increases the psychological association between routine behavior and the possibility of winning.
Social reinforcement amplifies the appeal of the game piece chase. McDonald’s has historically shared stories of major winners on its website and in press releases, highlighting individuals or families who collected winning sets and received cash or high-value prizes. Meanwhile, customers who do not win typically forget the many times they were unsuccessful and instead remember that someone did win. This form of selective recall strengthens the belief that winning is possible, even when the statistical likelihood is low. Online communities and social media also fuel the perception that many people are trying, trading, and winning, even if the actual number of winners is small relative to the total number of participants.
Another psychological component is the illusion of control. Although the distribution of McDonald’s Monopoly stickers is random and determined by McDonald’s and its promotional partners, customers often feel that trading strategies, persistence, or repeatedly ordering specific items will improve their chances. In reality, no individual strategy significantly changes the odds, but the feeling of active participation and control increases emotional investment in the game. This illusion is powerful because it replaces passive consumption with an active quest, even if the outcome remains largely unpredictable.
Data from years of the Monopoly promotion illustrate how ingrained the game has become in consumer culture. McDonald’s repeatedly reports high engagement rates during promotional windows, with millions of participants collecting pieces each year. The campaign has expanded globally, appearing in various countries and regional markets with localized prize structures. Despite occasional controversies over game piece authenticity or distribution irregularities, McDonald’s Monopoly remains one of the company’s most recognized promotional efforts, in part because it consistently generates buzz and drives repeat visits among loyal customers.
McDonald’s also leverages the game to promote specific menu items. In some iterations of the promotion, customers receive Monopoly pieces only with the purchase of select products, driving sales of those items during the promotional period. This tactic aligns financial incentives with psychological triggers, boosting both customer engagement and revenue simultaneously. The limited-time nature of the promotion, combined with the broad appeal of potential rewards, makes it a powerful tool to increase foot traffic and sales volume during otherwise typical weeks.
Critics of the game have sometimes argued that promotions like McDonald’s Monopoly can encourage impulsive spending or unhealthy eating patterns, especially when customers repeatedly visit fast-food restaurants in the hope of winning. McDonald’s promotional rules generally state that game pieces do not influence the nutritional value of menu items, but the behavioral effect of associating food purchases with the possibility of winning may nonetheless drive purchases that would not have otherwise occurred. McDonald’s addresses some of these concerns in promotional guidelines by encouraging responsible participation and clarifying that most participants will not win major prizes.
In economic terms, the success of McDonald’s Monopoly demonstrates how promotional psychology can drive measurable changes in consumer behavior. The campaign consistently increases customer visit frequency throughout its run, and it often appears in earnings reports and marketing briefs as a highlight of McDonald’s promotional calendar. Restaurants, franchises, and corporate stakeholders benefit from the increased traffic and sales volume generated by the game, even though only a fraction of participants receive significant prizes.
Ultimately, McDonald’s Monopoly is more than a promotion. It is a structured engagement strategy that leverages scarcity, routine behavior, ritual interactions, social reinforcement, and the illusion of control to transform ordinary fast-food consumption into a repeat-driven experience. These variables work together to create a psychological environment in which customers feel compelled to try again, hope for a win, and associate their participation with a broader quest rather than just a purchase.
Feature Photo by Steve Travelguide licensed from Shutterstock
