Climbing High in West Virginia

Celebrating 40 years this month, the West Virginia Lottery has generated $13.7 billion for good causes in the Mountain State.

By Patricia McQueen

Published January 20, 2026

On January 9, the West Virginia Lottery celebrated its 40^th birthday. In reality, the Lottery is celebrating all year long, a fitting way to showcase the $13.7 billion in revenues to good causes provided to the state since the first tickets were sold in early 1986.

There are many moving parts to the West Virginia Lottery, which operates or serves as regulator for more product lines than any other American lottery. Sure, you’ll find scratch tickets, Powerball, Mega Millions, Keno and a few other traditional lottery games, plus an iLottery program that launched on October 31, 2024. In total, these games generated $227 million in sales during FY25.

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That’s just the tip of the iceberg. The Lottery also serves essentially as a regulator for video lottery terminals, table games, iGaming, and sports betting (at casinos and online). Combined, lottery sales and gross gaming revenues from these other forms of gaming were $1.6 billion in FY25, and they generated $563.5 million in revenues to West Virginia.

The state currently distributes those revenues to more than 30 individual government funds and programs. Most cover three broad areas: education, tourism and programs for seniors. More recently, a dedicated veterans scratch ticket became a regular part of the game portfolio, and it has generated $22 million in revenue since 2000. “We have a lot to be proud of here,” says Acting Director David Bradley. “We support seniors, veterans, education, and tourism. Those are all great causes.”

He’s been with the Lottery for 35 of its 40 years, and he’s especially proud of the “employees that make the wheel go around. It takes a team to make this work.” He’s also grateful for the support the Lottery receives from the Governor’s Office and the West Virginia Legislature.

West Virginia Lottery revenues have helped fund educational initiatives from preschool to higher education, including scholarships, school construction and renovation, and technology upgrades for classrooms. Some $4.1 billion has gone to these programs since inception. And since 2002, the PROMISE Scholarship Program has helped more than 75,000 students attend an in-state college or university, awarding $625.8 million to date.

Bradley is particularly proud of the revenues raised for senior programs. “Seniors are important to us and important in our state.” The only lottery other than Pennsylvania that sends significant dollars to senior programs, West Virginia has provided nearly $1.8 billion in proceeds over the years to help meet nutritional, healthcare, and long-term care needs of West Virginia senior citizens to help improve their quality of life.

More than $1.5 billion in Lottery revenues have supported the state’s ever-expanding tourism business, upgrading facilities and preserving and maintaining parklands.

The remaining revenues over the years were allocated to the state’s General Fund, problem gambling treatment programs, or where appropriated as necessary by the legislature.

All these earned revenues have come with a watchful eye on responsibility. The Lottery focuses on promoting responsible game play, and the private operators also do their share. “It’s important to us that people play responsibly and play within their budget,” says Bradley. To help with that goal beyond the retail environment, a number of RG best practices are also an integral part of the iLottery system. And a responsible gambling research study is currently underway, in partnership with West Virginia University.

In addition, West Virginia is one of the few states where a lottery actually provides direct funding for problem gambling treatment programs, through a partnership with First Choice Services. That company also oversees the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline in the state.

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iLottery Integration

There have been a number of significant events in the West Virginia Lottery’s history, from major new product launches to expansion into other forms of gaming. The most recent game-changer was the launch of an iLottery sales platform together with a new PlayON loyalty program on October 31, 2024, all packaged with a shiny new website and app under the “iPlay” brand. The Lottery’s new logo combines the iPlay logo with the Lottery’s traditional logo, providing a strong visual for that says “iPlay West Virginia Lottery.”

“It doesn’t mean you’re just playing on the app or at retail – it’s wherever you want to play,” explains iLottery Supervisor Terry Dunford. “It leverages the trust in the Lottery that we have been building for decades.” The expanded logo appears everywhere, from the online platform to retail signage. “It reinforces that everything is together as one brand.”

“We make it a lot easier for players to engage with the Lottery,” says Deputy Director of Marketing Danielle Snidow, adding that the brand also helps promote an important internal synergy in lottery operations with retail and online sales.

Games available at launch were Powerball, Mega Millions and Lotto America, plus a suite of eInstants (in keeping with the iPlay theme, these are branded “iNSTANTS” in West Virginia). Daily 3, Daily 4 and Cash 25 were added last February.

The comprehensive PlayON loyalty program incorporates both online and retail play and offers numerous chances to earn and redeem loyalty points.

“As we intended, iLottery is simply an extension of our retail games, and not replacing them,” says Dunford. “We wanted to really build a brand that people could trust, and that our retail partners could get behind. That’s why we launched the loyalty program with it, because we can drive sales to retail through that program.”

The retail component will be greatly enhanced when a new central gaming system is installed in the near distant future. A primary goal is to have full integration of online and retail purchases using a unified player wallet, which needs an upgraded retail system.

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Busy With Games

Games, of course, drive the business, wherever they are played. On the surface, the Lottery’s draw game portfolio hasn’t changed much in recent years, with the only new offering being Cash Pop in FY22. That was introduced as a monitor game, running every 15 minutes in coordination with Keno.

That’s not to say things haven’t been busy! After all, the launch of iPlay and all of its components took tremendous resources over many months, and changes in the portfolio of national games also required internal technical work along with new marketing strategies. Powerball underwent changes in 2021, which for West Virginia meant an additional drawing day. Most recently, Mega Millions went to a $5 offering last spring. Coming up soon is Millionaire for Life, the new national game which will be West Virginia’s first foray into the “for life” draw game category. And late this summer, the Lottery will also add Powerball Xs and Os, the new football-themed game created in partnership with the NFL.

The West Virginia team thinks Millionaire for Life will be very successful, while Powerball Xs and Os could be a breakout hit in the state. West Virginia may not have a professional football team, but it is one of the top ten states in terms of its NFL fan base. “It will be an opportunity for us to potentially reach out to a lot more people who aren’t necessarily traditional lottery players, but who are interested in football,” notes Snidow. “We think that could be a chance to reach new players.”

Once the dust settles from some of these more labor-intensive initiatives, Fast Play could be the next product line. “We are keeping very busy here at the West Virginia Lottery,” says Snidow.

Despite the intensive recent activity, scratch games never took a back seat. After all, in most recent years they account for almost 70% of the sales of traditional lottery products, and provide a critical balance to offset the ups and downs of the big jackpot games.

Currently, West Virginia offers scratch ticket price points up to $30, and a $50 game will likely be considered at some point. Meanwhile, there are subtle shifts in strategy, with fewer $1 games being introduced and $3 games gradually being phased out in favor of more $5 games.

Not surprisingly, a highlight of this year’s scratch games is the Celebrate 40 family. It’s a 40^th anniversary family of games at the $1, $2, $5, $10 and $20 price points. It’s joined by West Virginia Wins, an iInstant game on the iPlay platform that also celebrates 40 years of giving back.

This summer, the Lottery will launch both scratch and iInstant games in partnership with Marshall University and West Virginia University. It’s the first time the Lottery has partnered with these venerable institutions, and there is a lot of potential for cross-promotion.

All lottery games are supported with marketing campaigns and social media. “We support our current draw game portfolio through clear, consistent messaging and campaigns, and our instant game portfolio is managed in coordination with Brightstar through regular ideation sessions,” Snidow explains. “To keep the ideas fresh, we get ideas from other lotteries, but we also put our unique spin on them.”

She’s beaming with pride after the West Virginia Lottery recently received four Regional TV Telly awards: a Silver award for Use of Animation in its General Proceeds spot; a Bronze award for 2D Animation in its Educational Proceeds commercial; and two Bronze awards for Use of Animation and Fully Animated Piece for the Winning Wonderland spot. The Telly Awards are the world’s largest honor for video and television across all screens in the advertising industry.

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A Year-Long Celebration

There’s nothing like awards – and a big anniversary – to really ramp up the excitement. As noted, there are already special anniversary games in the market, and throughout this year, players can redeem their PlayON loyalty points to enter a special 40^th Anniversary Draw on January 5, 2027. Prizes for that draw total $1 million, with a $500,000 grand prize awarded to one lucky winner and five other prize winners.

In addition, there are special quarterly anniversary promotions for chances to win unique prizes. Each promotion introduces a new theme and a new way to play, ensuring that the excitement never fades and that every season brings something fresh for players. Also planned are limited-time drawings, social media contests, retailer activations, and in-app bonuses.

And for simply logging into their PlayON account, players can spin a specially-designed anniversary Multiplier Wheel to earn bonus points redeemable for entries, prizes, and other PlayON rewards. Each purchase of a Celebrate 40 scratch ticket at retail unlocks additional spins for even more chances to win.

There’s plenty more going on at the retail level, highlighted by the exciting “Back to Our Roots 40th Anniversary Tour.” The team is planning an 80s-themed grassroots campaign, visiting 40 retailers for an in-store promotion. These promotions will all culminate with a $40,000 giveaway, where anyone who attends one of the promotions will have a chance to win. “Polaroids, windbreakers, and a little Bon Jovi and George Strait are sure to help make this throwback tour memorable,” says Public Relations and Drawing Manager Caitie Smith.

It’s all part of the Lottery’s effort to thank players for 40 years of giving back.

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Gaming Partners

The lion’s share of West Virginia Lottery revenues come from gaming activities, and the Lottery’s partners add to its unique product mix and operational diversity. Five facilities offer video lottery terminals and table games. Four are racetracks, including two offering horse racing (Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races and Mountaineer Casino and Resort) and the only two greyhound racing facilities left in the United States (Mardi Gras Casino and Resort and Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack). The other gaming facility is the famed Greenbrier Resort, billed as the country’s only private casino, with gaming access provided only to registered resort guests or through membership.

In addition to offering their on-site casinos, these operators are also the state’s only licensees for iGaming and sports betting, and the Lottery serves as the regulator for all these activities. Combined, these facilities generated nearly $940 million in gross gaming revenues for all these forms of gaming in FY25 alone. “They are mighty important to our budget and to the state, and they employ a lot of people,” emphasizes Bradley. “We’re grateful for their partnership, and they do a good job.”

Yet that’s not all! Spread throughout the state are some 1,100 limited video lottery (LVL) operators, which are liquor-licenses facilities that can have up to 10 VLTs per location. There is a statutory limit of 9,000 machines, and currently a little over 8,500 are in service. They generated $474 million in net machine income in FY25.

The casinos and the LVL locations may acquire the machines themselves or partner with others, while the West Virginia Lottery operates the central gaming system for all activities and provides complete regulatory oversight, from approving and testing the games and licensing the manufacturers of gaming equipment, to monitoring and auditing the data, to licensing the employees and so much more. “It’s a heavily regulated industry, but that’s what makes it work,” says Bradley.

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Moving Forward

With several new initiatives coming up, from the imminent debut of exciting new national games, to longer-term projects such as Fast Play and a new central gaming system, Bradley has distinct ideas to keep the momentum going.

It’s critically important to let people know that there are winners, especially during periods of low jackpots in the national games when the excitement wanes. Bradley cited a recent example in the Cash 25 game, where there were three top prize winners of $25,000 in a single drawing. “We have to make sure we’re putting out that message. These kinds of prizes may mean paying off a student loan, a car loan or even a home mortgage, or may provide a great vacation opportunity. In that respect, they can be life-changing. It’s all a matter of perspective.”

Perspective also applies to employees. Bradley is always asking of his West Virginia Lottery team: “How can we do better, for our retailers and our players? How can we stay relevant and fresh?” Everyone has to be willing to look inwards, and realize that “if things aren’t going the way we expect, are we part of the problem?” And even if things seem to be working, always doing the same thing is never the answer.

Fortunately, the nature of the lottery industry provides numerous opportunities to stay on top of new developments. Information is freely shared at conferences, and on a day-to-day basis lotteries can and do communicate with each other. They share experiences and opportunities, challenges and concerns. “We all try to work together to maintain the integrity and transparency of our industry.” And if that helps increase revenues to good causes, all the better.