Can You Play The Lottery Online?
Part of what makes 2020 so great is that almost everything has moved online, including lottery tickets in some states. So, can you play the lottery online and become a multi-millionaire? Yes, you absolutely can play some lotteries online!
But, how does it work and what should you look for? We’ve put together this guide to help you find a great lottery online ticket purchase to make your life easier.
Who Can Play the Lottery Online?
Before 2009, all types of gambling online were considered illegal because of the Interstate Wire Act of 1961. And the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006. These are federal laws that apply to wagering on “sporting events or contests” through electronic devices.
In 2009, New York and Illinois applied to the Department of Justice for clarification on the laws. Over a two-year investigation, authorities reviewed the language of the acts.
In 2011, the Department of Justice confirmed that the two acts only applied to sports. Well before the Supreme Court overturned Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. According to the DOJ, this meant that online lotteries and other forms of gambling were allowed.
So, multi-state lotteries and in-state draws can allow ticket sales online, if they have state laws to allow it. This includes Powerball lottery games, Mega Millions, and any other draws the state has voted on.
Where to Play the Lottery Online
Now, it’s time to try out some games for online lottery players in the states that have launched this service. To buy a winning ticket, all you need is an account, some funds, and a few winning numbers. Then, you can wait to see if you won the top prize through the online lottery site.
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Virginia
In some cases, you can also purchase tickets for the Mega Millions or Powerball draw games through these sites.
All State-Run Lotteries
As for the other states, we’ve listed their official websites, where you can check the outcomes of a draw in realtime. These don’t include the five states who have banned gambling altogether.
- Arizona – arizonalottery.com
- Arkansas – myarkansaslottery.com
- California – calottery.com
- Colorado – coloradolottery.com
- Connecticut – ctlottery.org
- Delaware – delottery.com
- District of Columbia – dclottery.com
- Florida – flalottery.com
- Georgia – galottery.com
- Idaho – idaholottery.com
- Illinois – illinoislottery.com
- Indiana – hoosierlottery.com
- Iowa – ialottery.com
- Kansas – kslottery.com
- Kentucky – kylottery.com
- Louisiana – louisianalottery.com
- Maine – mainelottery.com
- Maryland – mdlottery.com
- Massachusetts – masslottery.com
- Michigan – michiganlottery.com
- Minnesota – mnlottery.com
- Missouri – molottery.com
- Montana – montanalottery.com
- Nebraska – nelottery.com
- New Hampshire – nhlottery.org
- New Jersey – njlottery.net
- North Carolina – nc-educationlottery.org
- North Dakota – ndlottery.org
- New Mexico – nmlottery.com
- New York – nylottery.org
- Ohio – ohiolottery.com
- Oklahoma – lottery.ok.gov
- Oregon – oregonlottery.org
- Pennsylvania – palottery.com
- Puerto Rico – loteriasdepuertorico.com
- Rhode Island – rilot.com
- South Carolina – sceducationlottery.com
- South Dakota – sdlottery.org
- Tennessee – tnlottery.com
- US Virgin Islands – winusvilottery.com
- Vermont – vtlottery.com
- Virginia – valottery.com
- Washington – walottery.com
- West Virginia – wvlottery.com
- Wisconsin – wilottery.com
