Weekly Lottery News: iLottery, UK Games, MUSL

Key Takeaways

U.S. lotteries are accelerating online channels and licensed omnichannel products as retail growth stays uneven.
The UK National Lottery is pairing a product reset with weaker jackpot-driven sales and political scrutiny of its leadership.
Multi-state operators are using brand partnerships to add weekly draw and instant-game inventory beyond Powerball and Mega Millions.

Massachusetts iLottery Crosses $110 Million Early

Massachusetts Lottery Executive Director Mark William Bracken told the Lottery Commission that more than $110 million had been wagered online in the first 26 days after iLottery launched on 27 July, faster than any other U.S. state at launch. The platform added more than 23,000 new accounts and about 49,000 first-time depositors, while more than 160,000 players migrated from the existing retail app. July unadjusted sales were up $3.7 million year on year, and estimated net profit for the month rose to $80.3 million from $68.8 million a year earlier. The early figures matter because several large U.S. lotteries still lack full iLottery, and Massachusetts is using the launch to offset mixed instant-ticket prize costs rather than rely only on multi-state jackpots. Source: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/25/business/massachusetts-online-lotto-new-accounts-bets/

UK Operator Refreshes Games as Sales Soften

Allwyn reported that New Lotto, relaunched on 10 June with a two-round format, had produced 56 millionaires in about ten weeks, compared with 35 in the same window a year earlier. Powerball, introduced on 21 July as the first official offering outside the United States, had paid more than £13.8 million across nearly one million prizes and drawn about 40,000 first-time National Lottery players. Those product wins sit against a weaker commercial backdrop: UK gross gaming revenue fell 16% to €914 million in the quarter to 30 June, and contributions to good causes and gaming taxes declined with it. Group net revenue still rose 27% to €1.25 billion, helped by Continental Europe and the PrizePicks acquisition, while UK adjusted EBITDA improved after the technology transformation. MPs also questioned interim UK chief executive Phil Walker’s prior Gambling Commission sanction at William Hill; Allwyn CEO Robert Chvátal defended the appointment as the right fit for the next operating phase. The UK Gambling Commission separately varied Allwyn’s licence to allow a £10 scratchcard pilot from September. Sources: https://www.allwyn.com/investors-news/q2-2026-preliminary-unaudited-financial-results · https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-and-players/guide/page/2026-licence-decisions · https://igamingbusiness.com/people/allwyn-ceo-robert-chvatal-backs-uk-leader/

Powerball and NFL Confirm Xs & Os Launch

The Multi-State Lottery Association and the NFL confirmed Powerball Xs & Os, a $5 weekly draw in which players select eight NFL team logos. Sales start 8 September, with the first Sunday draw on 13 September. Twenty-four jurisdictions are in at launch, including Massachusetts, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Tennessee and West Virginia; California will not offer the game. Match-8 odds are listed at 1 in 10,518,300, with a rolling jackpot and the first national promotional prize programme in Powerball history. The product is designed to capture weekly football attention without competing directly with Monday-Wednesday-Saturday Powerball draws, and it extends MUSL’s catalogue after years of dependence on two flagship jackpot games. Source: https://www.powerball.com/powerball-and-the-nfl-team-up-for-the-launch-of-powerball-xs-and-os

Scientific Games Opens Multi-State Game Show Link

Scientific Games said its SG Signature Linked Game, Game Show Experience, is live in four U.S. markets, with nine more scheduled by 1 December. Participating lotteries include Iowa, South Carolina, Tennessee, Maryland, Delaware, South Dakota, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Texas, the District of Columbia, Kansas, Illinois and Maine. The omnichannel package pairs licensed The Price Is Right, Family Feud and Press Your Luck scratch, Fast Play and digital games with a 2027 Los Angeles winners’ event offering up to $10 million. More than 100 trip winners will attend a taping and a private on-stage event; cash won in the final round is matched and shared among other trip winners. The launch is a test of whether licensed entertainment IP can lift instant and second-chance engagement when large jackpot cycles are quiet. Source: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/its-go-time-for-the-game-show-experience-scientific-games-multi-state-sg-signature-linked-game-302861489.html