The National Lottery’s outgoing licence holder has reported making a record £919.2m for good causes in the first half of the financial year.
Camelot, which will hand over the lottery licence to Allwyn next year, also revealed this week that it has been bought by the new operator.
Upon completion of the acquisition, Camelot will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Allwyn, to whom it lost the National Lottery licence after 28 years at the helm.
Digital sales drive increase
From 1 April to 24 September, Camelot made over £4bn in sales, which is up £102.5m on its 2021-22 half-year sales. This is “the first time in the company’s 28-year operation” this has occurred, it said.
Camelot announced this week that £956.5m had been raised but of this amount, £37.3m was retained and spent on marketing expenditure for the core draw-based games and the National Lottery brand.
The £919.2m for good causes is up by £74.1m (8.8%) on 2021-22 half-year sales, which sat at £845.1m.
This “record half-year” has been driven by an increase in digital sales, which were are up by 13% this year. Within this, mobile sales grew by 19% to an all-time high.
‘Returning more to good causes than ever before’
Sir Hugh Robertson, Camelot's chair, said: “I am delighted that these record results show that the National Lottery is returning more to good causes than ever before. In this hugely testing economic period, I am proud that my team’s remarkable performance builds on previous years of record ticket sales and returns to good causes – and extends our track record of delivering for people across the UK. With just over a year to run until the start of the next licence period, I am confident that the National Lottery has never been in better shape.”
Camelot’s chief executive Nigel Railton said: “Thanks to the commitment and professionalism of everyone at Camelot – and all of our hard work over the last few years – this record half-year performance confirms that we have a very healthy and successful National Lottery that continues to benefit the whole of the UK.
“These fantastic results also demonstrate our ability to adapt quickly and decisively to fast-changing and challenging economic conditions, while maintaining our longstanding reputation for selling tickets in a socially responsible way – attributes that have helped to keep the National Lottery in excellent health at such an important time for the UK.”
Allwyn is set to become the second National Lottery licence holder in February 2024 and will run it for a decade.
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