The National Lottery's UK operator has reported a 14% drop in sales in the three months to the end of June, weeks after it emerged that payments to good causes had fallen to an eight-year low at the start of the year.
Revenue and payments decline
Allwyn, which operates the lottery, said total revenues in the UK were 914 million euros (£784 million) in the second quarter, down 14% on the same period last year. Contributions to good causes and gaming taxes totalled 678 million euros (£578 million), compared with 859 million euros (£737 million) paid out in the same quarter of the previous year.
The latest figures follow data from the Gambling Commission showing that payments transferred to good causes declined to their lowest level in eight years in the first quarter of 2026. Money raised by the National Lottery supports funding for health, education, sport and the arts across the UK. The amount contributed varies depending on factors such as sales and the value of prize money distributed to winners.
Reasons for the drop
Allwyn attributed the year-on-year decline in sales to more favourable EuroMillions jackpot cycles in 2025, making this year weaker by comparison. The company also cited a major technology upgrade that took the National Lottery website and apps offline for around 24 hours.
The upgrade, which involved about £450 million of investment, included moving 18 million player records and more than three billion historical transactions to new platforms, updating the lottery website and mobile apps, and transforming technology used by retail partners. Allwyn said it expected UK revenues for the full year to come in lower than previously anticipated.
Powerball launch and group performance
The National Lottery has been boosted recently by the launch of a UK version of Powerball, the world's biggest jackpot game, last month. Players joined the game during a 43-draw rollover that culminated in a 1.04 billion US dollar (£890 million) prize in Illinois in the US. The UK jackpot of £521 million was more than double the highest-ever EuroMillions jackpot of 250 million euros (£214 million). The draw reached a million prize winners on Thursday, with a total of £14.1 million paid out.
Across the wider group, which also operates lotteries in countries including Austria, Greece and Cyprus, revenues rose 6% to 2.4 billion euros (£2.1 billion) for the second quarter.
