European Lotteries

History and Mandate

European Lotteries is the umbrella body representing Europe's state-authorised national lottery operators. It was established in 1983 as a Swiss non-profit association, at a time when European markets were beginning to integrate and lottery operators needed a coordinated voice before emerging EU institutions. Today its membership comprises roughly 70 licensed lottery organisations from more than 40 countries, including the state lottery operators that jointly run transnational games such as EuroMillions and Eurojackpot. The association itself does not operate these games; they are run by groups of member lotteries under cooperation agreements.

Business Model and Governance

EL is not a commercial gambling company. It does not sell tickets, operate games, or supply B2B technology to the industry. Instead, it functions as an institutional membership body and standards-setter. Its strategic value lies in defending the position of state lotteries in a competitive European market, where private betting and gaming operators compete with state-licensed lottery products. Governance is formally vested in a General Assembly of member organisations, with an elected Executive Committee overseeing activity between assemblies. The senior elected position is the President, while the head of the permanent professional staff is the Secretary General.

Advocacy and Policy Work

The association's core public-facing function is advocacy. It represents European lotteries before the European Commission, the European Parliament, and national regulators on gambling regulation, advertising, consumer protection, data protection, and anti-money-laundering policy. EL promotes what it calls the European model of gambling: tightly regulated, socially responsible state lotteries that return profits to society, as opposed to privately licensed and offshore betting and gaming. The association maintains a policy-facing presence in Brussels alongside its professional secretariat in Lausanne, allowing it to stay close to EU decision-making.

Member Services and Industry Role

Although EL is sometimes mistaken for an operator, its deliverables are member-facing rather than commercial. The flagship European Lotteries Congress brings together lottery executives and regulators, while specialised seminars and training courses cover regulation, responsible gambling, security, retail, and digital topics. EL also maintains a responsible-gaming framework that members use for self-assessment and compliance, and it runs a joint training programme with the World Lottery Association. Aggregated statistics and benchmarking help members compare performance across the European lottery sector. These activities make EL a convening body and knowledge hub for the state-lottery sector.

Market Position

In the broader iGaming landscape, European Lotteries represents the regulated state-lottery segment and acts as an institutional participant at industry events such as SBC Summit. Its members are licensed, authorised, or directly operated by their home states, which distinguishes EL from private-sector gambling trade groups. EL works closely with the World Lottery Association and other regional lottery bodies on shared standards. It is best understood as an institutional stakeholder and standards-setter rather than a supplier, operator, or platform provider.

Leadership and Governance

Because EL is an association, it does not use conventional corporate C-level titles. The current President is Ruud van Es, who also serves as CEO of Nederlandse Loterij, the Dutch national lottery operator. The Secretary General is Rolf van Rooij, who heads the permanent secretariat in Lausanne. The European Lotteries secretariat is small, and the organisation's headcount is not publicly disclosed.