Lottery is an arrangement in which prizes are allocated to participants in a competition by a process that relies entirely on chance. Although it may be possible to devise competitions in which a small element of skill is involved, this article focuses on the kind of lottery that typically involves paying for a ticket that allows players to select numbers in a large pool and win prizes if enough of their chosen numbers match those randomly selected by machines or by other means.
In the United States, 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have lotteries, which are government-run games that allow people to pay a nominal amount for a chance to win a cash prize. Some lotteries offer a single large jackpot, while others divide their prizes into smaller increments for more frequent winners. In either case, costs of organizing and promoting the lottery must be deducted from the final sum available to the winner.
Traditionally, lotteries have relied on an inertia effect to maintain revenues: initial sales and participation increase rapidly after a lottery’s introduction, then level off and even decline. To combat this, lotteries have diversified their offerings and pursued a more aggressive approach to marketing.
Lotteries are a common form of gambling, and their popularity is widespread throughout the world. In the United States, for example, 17 percent of adults reported playing lotteries at least once a week. Among those, high school-educated middle-aged men were more likely to play often than any other group.
