A lottery is a competition based on chance, in which numbered tickets are sold and prizes are awarded to those whose numbers match those drawn at random. It can also refer to:
The financial lottery:
The purchase of a lottery ticket represents an investment in the chance to win a large sum of money with relatively little risk. Despite the skepticism of economists and public policy makers, lotteries are extremely popular among the general population. Many people consider them a low-risk alternative to saving for retirement or college tuition. But the purchases of lottery tickets are made with foregone income that could have been saved in a savings account or invested elsewhere.
As with other forms of gambling, the odds of winning a lottery prize are very low. The mathematics of probability shows that, over a very long time, the chances of winning a particular lottery prize will decline to zero. However, a small proportion of people can win huge prizes with just a single ticket purchase.
While some people play the lottery to make a quick fortune, others do so in order to help their community or family members. For example, a lottery may be held to award apartments in a subsidized housing complex or kindergarten placements at a public school. While such lotteries do not meet the strict definition of a gambling lottery, because consideration (property or work) must be paid for a chance to win, they still operate on the same basic principles as traditional gambling lotteries.
The history of the lottery dates back to ancient China, where keno slips were used to determine the winners of a game that involved throwing dice. But modern state lotteries have only been around since 1964, and have grown into multibillion-dollar industries that generate tens of billions in annual revenues. In the US, there are now 44 state lotteries that offer a wide variety of games, from the traditional keno and bingo to instant tickets and scratch-off cards. The games vary widely in their prize amounts and the odds of winning, but all share a common factor: broad public support. Once established, state lotteries develop extensive specific constituencies, including convenience store operators and their vendors; lottery suppliers, whose heavy contributions to state political campaigns are regularly reported; teachers (in states where lottery proceeds are earmarked for education); and state legislators, who soon come to rely on the revenue streams they create. The evolution of state lotteries is a classic case of piecemeal and incremental public policy, in which the interests of the general population are rarely taken into account. Moreover, once established, lotteries are extremely difficult to dismantle.