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NH Lottery Says First Year of Sports Betting Profitable, Online Gaming Popular

Two lottery jackpots are jumping, Wednesday’s Powerball drawing reached an estimated $363 million. Friday’s Mega Millions is expected to top $400 million.

Wednesday marked one year since sports betting became legal in New Hampshire. Sununu tweeted that over $300 million has been wagered, providing $10 million in funding for the state’s public education system.

“We’ve only had really seven months of sports, I mean, back in March when we were all gearing up for the Final Four everything closed down,” Executive Director of the New Hampshire Lottery Charlie McIntyre said.

DraftKings is just one method people have been playing remotely during the pandemic, the New Hampshire lottery opened its website in September 2019.

“It allowed us to continue driving revenue growth while still providing folks the chance to buy a ticket, and safely obviously,” McIntyre said. “As you can image, folks are particular about their numbers, their grandkids birthdays, the year they got married, etcetera. So, it’s nice to have them be able to buy a ticket safely from the confines of their home.”

Lottery officials said there is usually a boost this time of year. Granite Staters buying lottery subscriptions as gifts. Even purchasing tickets for the entire year with their lucky numbers.

Officials said it does have limits and tries to track online activity to make sure people play responsibly.

“We’re a big sponsor and supporter of responsible gaming practices,” McIntyre said.

A $1 million Mega Millions ticket was sold at a small store in North Stratford last week.