Allwyn Set To Replace Camelot As National Lottery Operator

Updated: Tuesday 15th March 2022

Camelot’s stewardship of the National Lottery is set to come to an end after 30 years, after the Gambling Commission named Allwyn as its preferred applicant for the next licence from 2024.

Camelot has run the UK National Lottery since it launched in 1994, generating billions for good causes and offering a wide range of games, but it has now been decided that a new direction will be taken following an application process that has been described as ‘fair, open and robust’ by the Gambling Commission.

The fourth National Lottery licence will begin in February 2024, so the next 22 months will see a transition of power before Allwyn’s tenure begins.

Who is Allwyn?

Allwyn is a subsidiary of Europe’s largest lottery operator Sazka, and has promised to ‘breathe fresh life into the National Lottery’. The main aim will be to deliver growth and innovation, whilst maximising returns to Good Causes.

Specific plans will only be revealed as time goes on, but the company is set to use its experience as a lottery organiser by sharing best practice among its European holdings.

The focus will be on the improvement of draw-based games, which in turn will lead to more revenue being generated for good causes.

Robert Chvátal, Allwyn CEO, said: “Allwyn Entertainment is a global lottery operator, so we’re thrilled by the opportunity to become the steward of the world’s finest lottery institution.

“We’ve grown rapidly across Europe since 2012 by investing in lotteries and making them better, and we intend to build on this phenomenal track record in the UK once Allwyn takes control of day-to-day operations in 2024. I’d like to thank everyone who has worked on our bid and the Gambling Commission for running a fair and competitive competition.”

Owned by Czech billionaire Karel Komárek, Sazka’s other lottery companies are OPAP in Greece and Cyprus, Lotteries Austria and Lotto ‘Gioco’ Italia.

The new Allwyn firm has been built to focus on the UK market and includes Sir Keith Mills and Lord Coe. Sir Mills said: “The National Lottery is a national treasure and we are honoured to have been chosen as its future custodian. With the Gambling Commission having put its trust in us, we can immediately start to enact our exciting plans to deliver the National Lottery back to the heart of our country.

“We will do this by rekindling the meaning the National Lottery has for each of us, whether as individuals or as part of the communities we live in; whether we play the National Lottery or not.”

Bidding Battle

The first licence was awarded to Camelot from 1994 to 2002, and the second from 2002 to 2009. The next contest was to oversee the National Lottery from 2009 to 2019, and this was again won by Camelot.

In 2012, this agreement was extended to 2023, while two more six-month extensions have followed since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The bidding battle to become the next licensee began in October 2020 and was narrowed down to four final applicants - Italian lottery giants Sisal SPA, media group Northern & Shell’sThe New Lottery Company, Allwyn and Camelot. The Gambling Commission has named Camelot as its reserve applicant.

Published: Tuesday 15th March 2022

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