Worldwide lottery sales rose by 10 per cent during the nine month period ended September 30th, according to the latest figures released by the World Lottery Association (WLA), with continued strong growth from the Latin American and Asia Pacific regions.

Participating European lotteries recorded year-on-year growth, but Latin America saw the biggest growth during the period, with aggregate sales up 22 per cent.

The Latin America region benefited from a strong performance from Argentina’s Lotería Nacional Sociedad del Estado which saw sales increase by 27 per cent year-on-year, while sales from Brazil’s Caixa Econômica Federal grew by 17 per cent.

Participating lotteries in the Asia Pacific region saw aggregate sales rise 18 per cent, following continued strong growth from the mainland Chinese lotteries. The China Sports Lottery saw sales climb 34 per cent during the nine month period, as a result of the World Cup which helped sales in July soar 93 per cent versus the previous year.

Sales from the Chinese Welfare Lottery were up by 18 per cent, while Australia’s Lotterywest recorded year-on-year growth of 5 per cent.

In Africa, participating lotteries saw sales increase by 5 per cent, with growth driven by Ghana’s National Lottery Authority which reported 19 per cent rise in sales. The Mauritian National Lottery and Morocco’s La Marocaine des Jeux both saw sales grow by 18 per cent year-on-year, offsetting a slight decline from South Africa’s National Lottery.

Sales from participating European lotteries were up 4 per cent on the back of the performances of Hungary’s Szerencsejáték and Greece’s OPAP, with growth of 25 per cent and 13 per cent respectively.

Sales were also up at the Czech Republic’s SAZKA (9 per cent), while Finland’s Veikkaus Oy, Poland’s Totalizator Sportowy, and Italy’s Lottomatica all posted sales growth of more than 5 per cent during the period. This helped to offset a collective decline in sales from the Spanish lotteries.

Despite the improving US economy, lottery sales in the North American region remained flat versus the same period last year, with aggregate sales up just 0.8 per cent. The California Lottery was the best performer, with sales up 8 per cent, while Canada’s Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation saw growth of 4 per cent.

Participating lotteries by region:

Africa:

National Lottery Authority – Ghana
Mauritius National Lottery – Mauritius
La Marocaine des Jeux et des Sports – Morocco
Loterie Nationale – Morocco
Gidani Proprietary Limited – South Africa

Asia Pacific:

LotteryWest – Australia
China Sports Lottery – China
Chinese Welfare Lottery – China
HKJC – Hong Kong
Mizuho Bank Ltd – Japan

Europe:

SAZKA sázková kancelář – Czech Republic
Veikkaus Oy – Finland
Française des Jeux – France
OPAP – Greece
Szerencsejáték Zrt. – Hungary
Lottomatica S.p.A – Italy
Norsk Tipping – Norway
Totalizator Sportowy Sp. z o.o – Poland
Loterías y Apuestas del Estado – Spain
Organización Nacional de Ciegos Españoles – Spain
Svenska Spel – Sweden
La Loterie Romande – Switzerland
Camelot UK Lotteries – UK

Latin America:

Lotería Nacional Sociedad del Estado – Argentina
Caixa Econômica Federal – Brazil
Polla Chilena de Beneficencia – Chile
Lotería National para la Asistencia Pública – Mexico

North America:

Loto-Québec – Canada
Ontario Lottery – Canada
California Lottery – United States
Connecticut Lottery Corporation – United States
Kentucky Lottery Corporation – United States
Minnesota State Lottery – United States
New York State Lottery – United States
Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation – United States