The global leader in retail and digital games, technology, analytics, and services that drive profits for government-sponsored lottery and sports betting programs, Scientific Games, has announced an expansion of its portfolio of licensed properties.
Courtesy of a new multi-year partnership inked with the National Basketball Association (NBA), fans of professional basketball will be able to experience licensed instant scratch games via US lotteries.
While cleverly combining the enthusiasm of NBA fans with the thrill of lottery play, the new deal will allow Scientific Games to further support lotteries by developing personalized second-chance promotions and immersive prizes.
Lotteries will also be given the opportunity to collaborate with local NBA teams to create customized team-specific games through sponsorship deals.
The Massachusetts Lottery, known for its impressive instant game sales, has been the pioneering lottery to capitalize on this partnership.
On November 19, the Lottery introduced an NBA Champion Boston Celtics-themed scratch ticket to coincide with the 2024-25 NBA season.
Executive director Mark William Bracken commented on the Celtics being “one of the most iconic franchises in all of sports” and expressed their thrill “to commemorate their most recent championship” with a ticket offering fans the chance to win up to one million dollars.
The tickets also featured a “variety of experiential and merchandise prizes.”
With an impressive $1.6 billion in sales since launching its first sports-themed ticket in 2006, the Massachusetts Lottery continues to lead the US in retail sales for this category.
Harnessing the Potential
Scientific Games’ vice president of licensing, Tina Hoover, took the opportunity to express enthusiasm for the collaboration, welcoming the NBA back into the lottery category.
Hoover acknowledged the “loyal and passionate fanbase” connected to the NBA, which, she thinks, “makes the brand perfect for lottery games that appeal to players in communities across a state.”
With 29 teams spread in major US cities and one in Canada, the league, known for its legacy of thrilling plays, legendary rivalries, and dominant dynasties, has a dedicated, worldwide following.
The VP went on to explain that every game will feature a customization option to fit a lottery’s home market while sales from the games will “benefit the lottery’s good cause programs in those same communities.”
In 2024, the company that serves 150 lotteries in 50 countries generated retail sales of $2.6 billion in North America from licensed branded lottery games.
In August 2023, Scientific Games introduced THE GAME OF LIFE to Pennsylvania Lottery players via a partnership signed with Hasbro.
At around the same time, the company announced it would introduce a new central gaming system to the national lottery in Latvia.
In October 2023, Scientific Games announced it would unveil its latest iLottery game, MONOPOLY Property Payout during the North American Association of State & Provincial Lotteries 2023 Conference in Milwaukee.