Lottery Geeks' Bill Dettloff explores whether or not online sports betting is really to blame for declining lottery sales in some states.
Lottery commissions throughout the US are bracing for what they assume will be an attack on their bottom lines. They fear that the exploding popularity of online sports gambling will hurt their businesses. Are their fears justified? Or is there something else at play?
Leading the call for action is Massachusetts Lottery Director Mark William Bracken. For the second year in a row, Bracken used a March lottery commissioners’ meeting to sound the alarm against maintaining the status quo in the face of increasing online sports gambling. He pointed to the 6.8% reduction in lottery sales his state recorded from February 2023 to February 2024. He also noted the lottery’s year-to-date net profit was $28.4m (£20.6m/€24.2m) less than during the same period last year.
But is Bracken’s logic sound? Is online sports betting cutting into lottery sales?
A..