Bookies reject National Lottery claims

Online betting companies have hit back at the National Lottery after it claimed that bookmakers who allow customers to bet on the outcome of Lotto draws without buying a ticket are diverting money from good causes.

A report by Indecon Economic Consultants, commissioned by Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI), repeated previously aired concerns that the lotto operator’s ability to generate revenue and pass proceeds onto worthy causes is diminished by players choosing to bet on the outcomes of draws with online bookmakers instead of buying a ticket.