A lottery is a form of gambling where numbers are randomly drawn for a prize. Governments vary in their approach, with some outlawing lotteries and others organizing them nationally or at the state level. Governmental regulations typically include age restrictions and vendor licensing. Lotteries were common in the 19th century but largely became illegal by the early 20th century in many countries. They began to reappear in the 1960s as a way for governments to generate revenue without increasing taxes.
In 1916, the Australian government initiated the 'Golden Casket Art Union' lottery to generate revenue for charities and various projects, with its inaugural draw aimed at supporting veterans of World War One.
In 1917, during the reign of King Rama V, the British government organized a lottery in Thailand (then known as Siam) with Thai consent to support Britain's war efforts.
In 1933, a national lottery was reintroduced.
In 1933, lotteries in Thailand became regularized under the finance department.
In 1934, Puerto Rico established the first modern government-run US lottery.
In 1964, New Hampshire established a lottery.
In 1967, the Kerala State Government initiated its lottery department, following a nationwide prohibition on private lotteries in India.
In 1969, Sports Toto Malaysia was founded and incorporated by the Malaysian Government, initially focusing on commercializing 4-Digits-based games.
In early 1969, the lottery industry in Malaysia began operations through the Berjaya Group.
In December 1970, Veikkaus started selling lottery tickets in Finland, marking the beginning of lottery operations in the country.
On January 3, 1971, the first lottery draw in Finland by Veikkaus was televised, marking the start of televised lottery events in the country.
In 1980, the Pennsylvania Lottery scandal involved weighting balls in The Daily Number.
In the autumn of 1980, the lottery in Finland changed its format from choosing six numbers between 1 and 40 to seven numbers between 1 and 40.
On August 1, 1985, the Malaysian government privatized Sports Toto Malaysia, selling it to businessman Vincent Tan, who merged it into his Berjaya Group.
In 1994, the National Lottery was established in the United Kingdom, sanctioned by the Gambling Commission (formerly the National Lottery Commission).
In 2003, Mohan Srivastava discovered non-random patterns in "Tic-Tac-Toe" tickets sold by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, leading to the recall of the game, making it the first ever recalled by the OLG.
In 2005, the Gambling Act 2005 imposed restrictions on the People's Postcode Lottery, limiting the maximum win per ticket to £500,000 or 10% of total draw proceeds.
In 2007, a rare lottery ticket bearing George Washington's signature sold for approximately $15,000. This ticket was from Washington's Mountain Road Lottery in 1768, which was unsuccessful.
On January 3, 2011, the lottery in Finland celebrated its 40th anniversary, having been drawn 2,126 times by this point.
From the 2011 round 41, the profit categories of the Finnish lottery were modified, altering the criteria for main and smallest victories.
In 2012, the Spanish Christmas Lottery, considered the biggest lottery worldwide, had a total prize payout of €2.52 billion if all tickets were sold, with the first category prize, El Gordo, totaling €720 million distributed among 180 winning tickets.
From January 3, 1971, until September 29, 2013, the lottery in Finland was televised on Yle TV1 before changes were made.
In October 2013, lottery draws in Finland were postponed on MTV3 after ten evening news due to sponsorship cooperation issues between Veikkaus and Yle, which was deemed illegal by FICORA.
In 2013, the Spanish Christmas Lottery reduced the number of available €20 tickets from 180 million to 160 million due to decreased demand, potentially reducing the maximum prize pool to €2.24 billion, with a maximum El Gordo of €720 million.
In 2014, it was estimated that the prize money of 1737 florins from a lottery held on May 9, 1445, was worth about US$170,000. The lottery, documented in L'Ecluse, raised funds to construct walls and town fortifications, featuring 4,304 tickets.
In the fiscal year 2017, Kerala collected GST worth Rs 908 crore from lotteries.
In 2018, Ohio became one of the first states to provide a digital lottery option, enabling players to participate through their smartphones using technology developed by Linq3.
In fiscal year 2018, Kerala's lottery revenue reached Rs 1,691 crore.
On January 7, 2020, the Lotto Max drawing set the record for the largest single jackpot in Canadian lottery history, amounting to $70 million.
In May 2022, the residents of Rhymney, Wales, won in the People's Postcode Lottery. This event was documented in a Channel 4 documentary, "The Welsh Valley That Won the Lottery".
In November 2022, specifically on November 8, 2022, Powerball achieved the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, reaching an estimated US$2 billion.
In 2024, Allwyn Entertainment Ltd assumed operation of the National Lottery in the United Kingdom, succeeding the original operator, Camelot Group.
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