UK Gambling Commission launches fourth National Lottery license competition

The UK Gambling Commission has today, 28 August, launched the competition to award the fourth National Lottery license.

The National Lottery is one of the world’s largest lotteries and the current (third) license is due to expire in 2023. Since launching in 1994, players have collectively raised more than £41 billion (USD 54 B) for 565,000 good causes across the UK, transforming lives and contributing to the arts, sport, heritage, and communities.

The National Lottery raises £30m for good causes, every single week. Let’s continue changing lives. Find out more about the fourth National Lottery licence competition here: https://t.co/OwvtypqRb8 pic.twitter.com/kQkrEoODaF

— Gambling Commission (@GamRegGB) August 28, 2020

The next license seeks to build on that success by creating a framework that maximizes the opportunities for players and good causes to benefit from innovation and creativity, whilst protecting the National Lottery’s unique status.   

Key changes for the fourth licence include:

• A fixed 10-year license: A fixed-term means that the licensee has a clear period for investment planning.
• Focusing on performance: Building on the National Lottery’s success to-date, the new license will provide greater flexibility to maximize returns to good causes, hand in hand with ensuring safe and fair play.
• Incentive mechanism: A new incentive mechanism will ensure the licensee’s incentives and delivery are closely aligned with returns to good causes
• Protecting the brand: The licensee will be required to foster stronger relationships with the distributors of National Lottery funding to further strengthen the link between the National Lottery brand, its players, and good causes.

In 2018, the Commission began an extensive program of global market engagement to hear from businesses and investors interested in the future of the National Lottery.

Today, interested parties are being invited to take part in the first formal stage of the competition. Applicants that pass through this stage will receive the Invitation to Apply (ITA) and supporting documents in order to begin preparing their application.

The preferred applicant will be announced in September 2021.

Neil McArthur, Gambling Commission Chief Executive, said: "Today, the competition for the fourth National Lottery license begins. Over the last quarter of a century, it has made an unprecedented contribution to communities across the UK and has made a difference to the lives of millions.

"The National Lottery is a national treasure. It has a reputation for providing enjoyable games and a high degree of player protection, as well as a rich history of prize giving and returns to good causes. We are determined to protect and build on the reputation of the National Lottery.

"For the fourth license, we will be evolving our approach to regulation to build on the National Lottery’s huge successes. In line with our outcomes-focussed approach to regulation, we want the next licensee to have greater autonomy to meet the needs of players in 2023 and beyond, whilst ensuring there is clear accountability for the performance of the National Lottery.

"Throughout our market engagement, we have been encouraged by a healthy level of interest from a range of different parties and we look forward to running a competitive process."

Minister for Sports, Tourism, and Heritage Nigel Huddleston said: "The National Lottery has a positive impact on communities right across the UK, supporting thousands of good causes as well as the sectors that brighten up our lives including the arts, culture, heritage, and sport. The fourth license competition will secure the National Lottery's future combining safe play with life-changing prizes. Most importantly it will help raise billions more pounds to benefit people's lives in villages, towns, and cities throughout the country."

Dawn Austwick, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Community Fund, and Chair of The National Lottery Forum, said: "The National Lottery has been at the cornerstone of communities across the UK for 25 years. In this time, National Lottery players have raised £41bn for good causes, supporting arts, sport, heritage and communities and transforming people’s lives. We welcome a strong competition to ensure this success continues for years to come."