National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery established in 1994 in the United Kingdom. It is regulated by the Gambling Commission, and is currently operated by Allwyn Entertainment Ltd, who took over from Camelot Group on 1 February 2024.
Two lottery ticket stands in a supermarket, 2009
One of the 245 Millennium Greens created by the Countryside Agency with National Lottery money
A lottery is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments. The most common regulation is prohibition of sale to minors, and vendors must be licensed to sell lottery tickets. Although lotteries were common in the United States and some other countries during the 19th century, by the beginning of the 20th century, most forms of gambling, including lotteries and sweepstakes, were illegal in the U.S. and most of Europe as well as many other countries. This remained so until well after World War II. In the 1960s, casinos and lotteries began to re-appear throughout the world as a means for governments to raise revenue without raising taxes.
A lottery drawing being conducted at the television studio at Texas Lottery Commission headquarters
Lottery tickets for sale, Ropar, India. 2019
An 1809 lottery drawing at Coopers' Hall in London
Selling tickets in London for the last government lottery in England