Lotteries are considered to be “soft” forms of gambling with a few negative effects. A growing number of people all over the world buy lottery tickets or scratchcards dreaming of winning solid cash prizes. In addition to that, playing the lottery does not require some special mathematical or gambling skills as the result is based on pure chance. The National Lottery in the UK has become a part of people’s culture. It was launched in 1994 and it quickly attracted the attention of people of different age groups.
To play Lotto, you need to select six numbers from 1 to 59. The objective of the game is to guess as many winning numbers as possible. Tickets are available at local retailers as well as online and players can buy up to 10 tickets at a time. In 2013, it was announced that the price of a National Lottery Lotto ticket has doubled to £2 per line. Players have the chance to play up to seven lines with a single ticket.
The UK National Lottery offers not only lotteries but also scratchcards and instant win games. In 2020, it was announced that the UK National Lottery launched the so-called “Must Be Won” games that are held when the jackpot rolls over five times. Players can bag a portion of the top prize for matching just two numbers in a draw.
Lottery winners can collect their prizes as a lump-sum. According to official information, over £78 billion in prizes has been paid up until now, making more than 5,500 individuals millionaires or multi-millionaires.
Currently, the UK National Lottery is owned by Camelot Group, whose franchise period started in 2009 and will expire in 2023. A curious fact is that Camelot also owns the Illinois State Lottery. The UK National Lottery is regulated under the National Lottery Act of 1998 and since 2013, the UK Gambling Commission is responsible for its proper management. Since its inception, the UK National Lottery has raised more than £42billion for charitable causes.
Interestingly enough, the minimum gambling age in the UK is 18 years old, but you can buy a lottery or a scratch ticket even if you are 16 years old. According to the most recent news from October 2021, individuals who would like to play games offered by the UK National Lottery should be at least 18 years old.
Over £2 Billion in Sales for Q2 of the 2020/2021 Fiscal Year
In November 2020, Camelot Group released information regarding its sales for the second quarter of the 2020/21 fiscal year (from 28th June 2020 to 26th September 2020). According to the company’s report, its sales amount to over £2 billion. For this period, the lotto sales reached a weekly average of £36.6 million per week.
The company generated a weekly average of £67.9 million from the sales of instant games such as scratchcards and interactive instant win games. The company registered a total of £34.2 million average weekly sales from EuroMillions. The following infographic is designed to provide detailed information regarding Camelot’s average weekly sales by types of games during Q2 of the 2020/2021 financial year.
| Game | Average Weekly Sale |
|---|---|
| Lotteries | £36.6 million |
| Instants (including scratch cards and interactive instant win) | £67.9 million |
| EuroMillions | £34.2 million |
| Thunderball | £5.8 million |
| Lotto HotPicks | £3 million |
| EuroMillions HotPicks | £1.8 million |
| Set for Life | £6.4 million |
Based on the figures, we can conclude that the instants, the lotteries, and EuroMillions garnered the most attention during the quarter. The figures further revealed that the National Lottery ticket sales in September 2020 dropped by £82.8 million compared to last September due to the decrease in EuroMillion sales.
National Lottery Prize Values
Needless to say, the prize stimulates people to play a given game. Over the years, the UK National Lottery offered lucrative cash prizes and that is the reason why so many Brits enjoy playing it. The following infographic is set to present information regarding the UK National Lottery prize values for the period from April 2008 to September 2019. The figures are presented in million GBP.
| Period | Prize Value |
|---|---|
| April 2008 – March 2009 | £2,627.6 |
| April 2009 – March 2010 | £2,797.3 |
| April 2010 – March 2011 | £2,984.5 |
| April 2011 – March 2012 | £3,379.4 |
| April 2012 – March 2013 | £3,697.6 |
| April 2013 – March 2014 | £3,636.5 |
| April 2014 – March 2015 | £4,034.1 |
| April 2015 – March 2016 | £4,198.9 |
| April 2016 – March 2017 | £3,943.2 |
| April 2017 – March 2018 | £3,928.4 |
| April 2018 – March 2019 | £4,128.5 |
| October 2018 – September 2019 | £4,304.2 |
It is important to mention that players who win a prize from the UK National Lottery should claim it within 180 days. Depending on the amount you have won, you can receive your winnings via different payment methods or at a retail shop. Prizes exceeding £50,000 should be claimed in person. Readers can find detailed information about claiming prizes on the official website of the UK National Lottery.
Contribution Toward Good Causes
The UK National Lottery contributes a big portion of its revenue to good causes such as health, education, environment, sport, arts, heritage, and others. According to information published on the Lottery’s official website, it raised over £42 billion over the years. The decision which sectors to be funded is made by 12 specialists appointed by the Parliament. In the fiscal year ending on 31st March 2020, the funds were distributed as follows:
- Health, education, environment, and charitable causes – 40% share
- Sport, art, and heritage sectors – 20% each.
A curious fact is that the UK National Lottery celebrated 25 years of supporting good causes across the UK in 2019. The Lottery supported thousands of projects. Some of the most popular ones are Eden Project, the Angel of the North, the Millennium Dome, the National Space Centre, the 2012 Olympics and Paralympic Games, and others.
The following infographic presents detailed information about the total funds raised for good causes by the UK National Lotteries and a comparison to previous periods.
| Fiscal Year | Total Funds Raised for Good Causes | Comparison to Previous Periods |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 2019 – 20 (April – June) | £388.2 million | 12.3% decrease compared to Q4 of 2018-19; 7.2% increase compared to Q1 2018-19 |
| Q2 2019 – 20 (July – September) | £460.9 million | 18.7% rise compared to Q1 2019 – 20; 8.2% increase compared to Q2 2018-19 |
| Q3 2019 – 20 (October – December) | £500.1 million | 8.5% increase compared to Q2 2019-20; 28.2% increase compared to Q3 2018-19 |
| Q4 2019 – 20 (January – March) | £439.12 million | 12.2% decrease compared to Q3 2019-20; 0.8% decrease compared to Q4 2018-19 |
| Q1 2020 – 21 (April – June) | £382.31 million | 12.9% decrease compared to Q4 2019-20; 1.5% decrease compared to Q1 2019-20 |
| Q2 2020 – 21 (July – September) | £452.91 million | 18.5% increase compared to Q1 2020-21; 1.7% decrease compared to Q2 2019-20 |
According to the UK Gambling Commission, the UK National Lottery did not experience a major slowdown during the Covid-19 pandemic. The figures show that the funds raised during Q2 2020 – 2021 are just 1.7% lower compared to the funds raised during Q2 2019 – 2020.
The Commission reported that the total amount of unclaimed prizes added as returns to good causes in Q2 2020 – 21 is approximately £24 million more compared to Q1 of the same fiscal year. It was further revealed that the EuroMillion sales amounted to £278 million in Q1 and £337million in Q2, representing an increase of 21%. The significant increase in EuroMillion sales is attributed to the increase in rollovers and promotional events.
National Lottery Participation by Game Type
The Taking Part is a survey of cultural and sport participation in England conducted by Ipsos Mori and NetCen Social Research on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS). It aims at finding out how people prefer to spend their leisure time and how much time the kids spend on sports and cultural activities in and out of school.
From April 2019 to March 2020, the Taking Part survey was examining the participation of adults from 16 to 75+ years old in National Lottery games. The surveyed individuals randomly chosen from the Post Office’s list of addresses in England. Of all respondents, 44% reported having played a National Lottery Game at least once in the last 12 months.
The most popular type of game among respondents who have played National Lottery games at least once in the last 12 months is lotto (71%). EuroMillions is the second most-sought after game as 60% of the National Lottery players answered to have played it at least once in the last 12 months. Scratchcards are the third most popular game (29%), followed by Thunderball (11%), other National Lottery (4%), and HotPicks (3%). Only 2% of respondents reported playing online instant win games.
Of all respondents who have played National Lottery games, 35% reported playing every week, 25% every month, and 40% less often than every month. In 2019, the UK Gambling Commission conducted a survey revealing the same frequency of participation.
Society Lotteries
Society lotteries are raising funds to support a given non-commercial society. These are established for charitable purposes. Society lotteries can be either large or small. Large society lotteries have proceeds of over £20,000 for a single draw and aggregate proceeds from lotteries of over £250,000 annually. In addition to that, large society lotteries should be licensed by the UK Gambling Commission.
Small society lotteries have proceeds of less than £20,000 for a single draw and the aggregate proceeds from lotteries do not exceed £250,000 per annum. What is more, small society lotteries need to be registered with the local authority. Based on the information presented by the Taking Part survey, 15% of all respondents reported having played society lotteries in the last 12 months between April 2019 to March 2020.
Why Do People Play the National Lottery?
Various reasons drive people to indulge themselves in National Lottery games. The Taking Part survey revealed the most common reasons that encourage people to play lottery games. Of all respondents who reported having played lottery games in the last 12 months at least once, 67% answered that the prize is what stimulates them to buy a lottery ticket or a scratchcard. Of all respondents, 24% were found to participate in lottery games just because these do not require special skills. Another 24% of respondents reported that they enjoy lottery games as these support good causes.
Some of the less common reasons include the inexpensive price of the National Lottery games, the entertainment such games offer, and family traditions. The survey also unveils the reasons why some people have never wished to play National Lottery games. As much as 79% of respondents answered that they have never been interested in such games, while 9% answered that the lottery games are pricey.
The Demographics of National Lottery Players
The Taking Part survey also unveils information regarding the demographics of the individuals who enjoy playing games offered by the UK National Lottery. The majority of the people, and more precisely 54%, who reported playing lottery games are between 45 and 64 years old, while 47% are between 25 and 44 years old.
The survey further revealed that 44% of the people between 65 and 74 years old and 32% of respondents between 65 and 74 years old have participated in a lottery game at least once in the last 12 months. Only 21% of respondents between 16 and 24 years old reported playing lottery games. Based on this information, we can conclude that the National Lottery games attract the attention of people who belong to the middle age and older adulthood.
With regard to the ethnicity of respondents who reported playing lottery games, 47% are white, 42% are of mixed ethnicity, 40% are Black British people, 23% are of Asian ethnicity, and 29% are of other ethnicity groups.
Based on the region respondents come from, 54% of the surveyed people who reported playing lottery games come from the North East, while 44% are from the East Midlands, West Midlands, and South East. People from London tend to play lottery games the least, and more precisely 31% of all the surveyed people. When it comes to gender, 47% of respondents who reported playing lottery games are men and 41% are women.
Interestingly enough, 50% of respondents who admitted participating in lottery games are working as opposed to 35% who do not work. People who do not pay rent show a higher participation rate compared to those who are renting.
Participation Rates in Previous Years
A survey presented by statista.com unveils the participation rates in the UK National Lottery from 2014 to 2019. It covers 4,003 respondents of 16+ years old who played lottery games at least once in the past 4 weeks.
In 2015, it was reported that the participation rate reached 32.3% but it started to decline steadily. In 2016, the survey showed that approximately 30% of respondents participated in lottery games at least once in the past 4 weeks. In 2017, the participation rate reached its lowest point for the survey time, and more precisely 27.3%.
However, the situation started to change slowly but surely. In 2018, the participation rate increased to 27.6%. In 2019, it was registered that 29.6% of respondents participated at least once in a lottery game in the last 4 weeks.
Summary
The UK National Lottery has a huge number of supporters and fans, which comes as no surprise having in mind the cash prizes it offers. What adds up to its charm is the fact that for years, it raises funds for good causes such as health, education, environment, sport, arts, heritage, and others. According to official information, it has raised over £42 billion since its inception in 1994.
Perceived as a “soft” form of gambling, it is available to individuals under 18 years old. However, the country is to raise the age limit for playing National Lottery games from October 2021 in an attempt to protect minors from problem gambling. It is yet to become clear how the changes will affect the UK National Lottery revenues. Having in mind that the National Lottery attracts mostly the attention of people between 45 and 64 years old, we suppose that the new rules will have little to no impact on the UK National Lottery revenue.
- Author
Harry Evans
