Looking at the Annual Accounts of the National Lottery for 2024 there are several nuggets of information that need to be highlighted from a bricks-and-mortar Agent perspective.
The overall increase (2024 v 2023) in sales of €26.3 million can be attributed almost entirely to the online sales which increased by €23m year on year. It now stands at €155m, or 18% of all sales. The comparable sales figure for last year was €132m (15.9%).
| 2024 | 2023 | |||
| Draw based games | €540.1m | €531.5m | +€8.6m | +1.6% |
| Scratchcards / Interactive | €315.6m | €297.9m | +€17.7m | +5.9% |
| Total Sales | €855.7m | €829.4m | +€26.3m | +3.17% |
When the total amount of prizes that were paid out (€488m) are taken from sales, 65% of this total must be given to Good Causes. This means that €239million was given to over 4,500 Applicants in all of our communities across a huge array of categories.
Retailers sold €700 million National Lottery products last year, earning €42million in commission and additional commissions for payment of prizes and Agents Bonuses.
Equally important is the fact that we all helped very worthwhile projects in our neighbourhoods, many of which you know. In fact, with the average payment to each project being €53k, it’s without doubt one of the most satisfying part of our relationship with PLI.
The retailer network (excluding the Payzone “Lotto Light” and Post Offices) currently has almost 4,300 Agents who have average weekly sales of Lotto and Scratchcards totalling €3,130. While this is the average figure, it’s no secret that our convenience/forecourt/newsagent sector punches significantly above our weight in Lottery sales and each of our members realise the value of having the products in our stores.
We should be aware, but not afraid, of the online offering and realise that more than 4 out of every 5 sales made are in the physical bricks and mortar stores across Ireland.
We are also providing you with a summary of the Annual Report here from the Regulator of the National Lottery and would draw your attention to some of her comments regarding compliance.
It is most important to remember that these volunteers were aged between 15 and 17. This is contrasted with the Mystery Shopper visits carried out by the Lottery on regular occasions as in those scenarios, the purchasers are all aged over 18 years of age.
Following on from this, it is clear that the Regulator will be advising the Lottery that it needs to put in place additional resources to prevent the possibility of sales being made to minors across the Agent network.
