The Pennsylvania Lottery sold a record of more than $4.2 billion in games in the 2017-18 fiscal year, from which it paid a record of more than $2.7 billion in prizes to winners and generated more than $1 billion to benefit older Pennsylvanians.

“We’re proud that this was the seventh consecutive year in which we exceeded $1 billion in proceeds to benefit older adults,” said Lottery Executive Director Drew Svitko. “I’m grateful for the support of our players, business partners and the entire Lottery team for making this record year possible.”

Overall results of the fiscal year, which ran July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018, include:

• Traditional game sales totaled $4,200,564,811, up by $199.5 million year-to-year and breaking the previous sales record of $4.13 billion from the 2015-16 fiscal year.
• Net revenue generated for the Lottery Fund totaled $1,093,645,976, an increase of $47.9 million from the prior year.
• Prizes paid grew to a record of more than $2.7 billion, an increase of $145.5 million. A total of 67 players won prizes of $1 millionor more during the year. Overall, approximately 65 cents of every lottery sales dollar went back to winners.
• More than 9,300 licensed Lottery retailers statewide, many of them small and family-owned businesses, earned more than $224.1 million in sales commissions. That marked an increase of $12.7 million from the prior year.

“It’s important to note that two new products, Keno and iLottery, also contributed to our success, although both were launched toward the end of the fiscal year,” Svitko added.

Keno, which went on sale May 1, generated more than $7.6 million in sales. New iLottery online interactive games, which launched May 22, were responsible for $20.8 million in play through June 30.

“These encouraging results show that our ongoing modernization efforts are succeeding,” Svitko said. “With the Lottery facing increased competition from sports wagering, mini-casinos and other new forms of gambling, we must continue to work hard to grow revenues to benefit older Pennsylvanians.”