Lottery, also called raffle or the drawing of lots, is the procedure for distributing something (usually money or prizes) among a group by chance through the use of tickets purchased by the participants. Lotteries were once common in many cultures, from the biblical distribution of land to the Saturnalian apophoreta of ancient Rome during dinner entertainments. Modern state lotteries are generally run as businesses whose primary purpose is maximizing revenue, and their advertising necessarily focuses on persuading people to spend their money on tickets. This focus on generating revenues has raised questions about whether lotteries are at cross-purposes with the public interest.
In the United States, the lottery is one of the most popular forms of gambling. Most states have established a state agency or public corporation to administer the lottery, and they usually begin operations with a relatively modest number of games. Under pressure for increased revenues, they then progressively expand their offerings, which have often included games that resemble keno or video poker.
The principal argument used in every state to promote the adoption of a lottery has been its value as a source of “painless” revenue–that is, players are voluntarily spending their own money for the benefit of the public good. While this argument has been effective at persuading politicians to adopt a lottery, it is not particularly persuasive to consumers. The fact is, a substantial portion of the people who play the lottery do so because they plain old like to gamble.