State lotteries increasingly cede control to huge firms

By TINASHE CHINGARANDE, ELIZABETH FLOOD, SPENCER FRIEDMAN and DANIEL LAWALL / Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
Howard Center for Investigative Journalism

In three states, the day-to-day management of state lotteries comes from multinational corporations, which reap millions of dollars in profits from state-approved gambling. That’s according to a new investigation from the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at the University of Maryland. As lotteries add video gambling, sports betting apps and other new products to attract more players, analysts expect more states to forge deals ceding most day-to-day management of their lotteries to private companies, none of which are based in the U.S. anymore.