The Lotto Matrix: Jackpocket Exits New Mexico, Lottery.com Goes International

Welcome to this week’s “Lotto Matrix,” a weekly Friday compilation of the lottery industry’s most significant, interesting, or absurd happenings.

First things first

How much is Friday’s Mega Million jackpot drawing worth? A considerable chunk of change at an estimated $233 million, with a cash option of $110.5 million. There have been 13 rollovers since a $113 million jackpot was hit in Arizona on Jan. 17. While no one claimed the jackpot this week, there was one Match 5 winner in Pennsylvania from Tuesday’s drawing who scored $2 million thanks to the 2x multiplier.

How much is Saturday’s Powerball jackpot drawing worth? A sizable sum at an estimated $320 million, or a cash option of $150.8 million. There have been 20 drawings in a row now without a grand prize winner after no one hit the jackpot Saturday, Monday, or Wednesday evenings. Seven-figure non-jackpot prizes also continue to be elusive for Powerball players as the lone Match 5 payout spanning the last three drawings came last Saturday in Michigan for $1 million.

Jackpocket out of pocket

An unfavorable opinion from New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez regarding the status of lotto couriers has resulted in Jackpocket exiting the state.

While Jackpocket had a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in place with the New Mexico Lottery, the state’s tribes sought an opinion whether the MOU was in violation of their compact with the state. Torrez was requested to provide opinions for four questions raised by the tribes:

• Does Jackpocket’s presence trigger a contingency requiring the tribes and state to reopen good faith negotiations if any internet gaming is authorized in New Mexico?
• Does the Jackpocket app violate state law that prohibits any person from, directly or indirectly, knowingly accepting for a fee, property, salary or reward anything of value from another to be transmitted or delivered for gambling or parimutuel wagering?
• Does the Jackpocket app violate state law which prohibits the sale of lottery tickets for other than the stated price without signed authorization by the CEO of the NMLA?
• Does Jackpocket require a certificate of authority from the NMLA?

Torrez’s opinions for all four questions went against Jackpocket. He wrote, “It is the opinion of this Office that the Jackpocket app constitutes internet gaming,” and that is enough to warrant opening the compact between the tribes and state.

The attorney general added that since the New Mexico Lottery conducts gaming on a “pari-mutuel basis in which the jackpot is divided among all winners,” Jackpocket’s operations violate that specific state law cited. Further, since Jackpocket does not have written authority from the CEO of the New Mexico Lottery, it is in violation of a separate state law cited. Lastly, Torrez wrote that since Jackpocket is “effectively selling lottery tickets,” it needs a certificate of authenticity from the NMLA to act as a lottery retailer in the state.

Lottery.com ready for the global stage

Lottery.com announced Tuesday it has launched international lottery operations, their first expansion into new territories since the company’s re-launch. It estimates the European lottery market being worth $118.75 billion with an anticipated CAGR growth of 6.5% from 2025 through 2030. It estimates the Asian market at $5.1 billion with an anticipated CAGR growth of 2.9% from 2025 to 2029.

“We are thrilled to relaunch Lottery.com’s brand and platform to new consumers and markets, starting with our initial expansion into multiple countries in Europe and Asia,” said Lottery.com Chairman and CEO Matthew McGahan. “This marks a strategic step outside of the United States, paving the way for our global ambition — to offer communities worldwide a unified lottery solution.”

Lottery.com expects to use a regional roll-out approach on both continents, which is consistent with its previously announced strategy for expansion. It added its launches “will be guided by jurisdictional gaming regulations, the success of the regional brand performance, the competitive landscape, and consumer preferences.”

Iowa gets a Scientific Games upgrade

Scientific Games announced Monday it has completed its rollout of PlayCentral Powered by SCiQ self-service terminals at select Iowa Lottery locations. PlayCentral provides the state agency and retailers real-time data for improved sales tracking and inventory management. The Iowa Lottery could then refine its game portfolio to include targeted promotional efforts and distribution strategies.

“SCiQ is revolutionizing how lottery products are managed at retail by delivering both tactical and strategic analytics. We’ve incorporated all of SCiQ’s benefits within our industry-leading PlayCentral self-service machines,” said Scientific Games Senior VP, Americas Systems Mike Cardell in a statement. “It’s not only a win-win for the entire retail ecosystem, but for the player experience as well. And we commend the Iowa Lottery for its innovative approach to continually modernize with new technology.”

California dreamin’

The jackpot for the California Lottery’s SuperLotto Plus was claimed Wednesday for the first time in nearly three months after one player matched the five numbers between 1 and 47 and the Mega Number between 1 and 27. The California Lottery reported the winning ticket was sold in Cotati, northwest of Sonoma and less than 10 miles south of Santa Rosa.

It was the first jackpot awarded since there was one winning ticket sold for a $47 million drawing Dec. 11. Rollovers are common for the twice-weekly drawings given the low volume of tickets that appear to be sold — there were only 97,907 tickets purchased for Wednesday’s drawing, and California has an adult population of 30.6 million.

The jackpot has been reset to $7 million for Saturday.

Newsworthy nuggets

Your friendly Mega Millions reminder: Mega Millions is now allowing advance purchases only through drawings conducted before April 4 ahead of its price change from $2 to $5 that will take effect next month.

A good kind of lightning striking twice: WMUR Radio in New Hampshire reported that Jose Collado of Pelham claimed the first of three $4 million top prize winners Tuesday in the Massachusetts Lottery’s “$4,000,000 Gold 50X” game.

Lottery officials said the winning $10 ticket was bought at a Speedway in Somerville, Massachusetts. Collado was reportedly trying to further his string of good luck after purchasing a lottery ticket that paid out $1,000 at the same Speedway the previous day. He is the second New Hampshire resident to win $1 million or more playing the Massachusetts Lottery in the last three months.

Pennsylvania legislator moves for anonymous option for lottery winners: Pennsylvania Rep. Patrick Harkins is currently working on a bill that would allow lottery winners of more than $1 million to remain anonymous if they so choose. 

“As lottery jackpots continue to grow to hundreds of millions of dollars, winners have a higher risk of fraud, threats of physical harm against their property and family, and other serious and dangerous situations,” Harkins wrote as a memo on his official website. “To combat these potential adversities, I am introducing legislation that would protect the identity of any individual that wins a lottery prize of $1 million or more.”

Will the Hoosier Lotto drought end this weekend? The excitement remains palpable in Indiana, where the Hoosier Lotto victory drought is in its 15th month with Saturday’s drawing for a $42 million jackpot. The winless spell trying to match six of 46 numbers stretches back to Dec. 6, 2023, when a winning ticket was purchased in Speedway for a $44 million payout.

Until next week, dream big, check your numbers, and play responsibly!