A lottery is a game in which participants purchase tickets to win a prize based on a drawing of lots. The prizes can be cash or goods. The first recorded lotteries were held in the Low Countries during the 15th century to raise money for town fortifications, and to help the poor. Lotteries also played a major role in colonial America, financing many roads, canals, schools, colleges, churches, and public buildings.

During the American Revolution Benjamin Franklin used a lottery to raise funds for cannons to defend Philadelphia against the British. Today, the majority of states have lotteries, and they serve to supplement state government budgets. The primary argument in favor of a lottery is that it enables a government to spend without the need to raise taxes or cut public programs. However, studies have shown that the objective fiscal conditions of a state do not significantly affect whether or when it adopts a lottery.

Lotteries are operated by governments, and they often have a monopoly on their sale. In the United States, the profit from a lottery is divided between organizers, promotions, and prizes. The prizes themselves can be fixed amounts, or they can represent a percentage of total receipts. The latter format requires a risk of losing the entire prize fund in the event that ticket sales do not generate sufficient proceeds.

There are a number of other requirements for the operation of a lottery, including a mechanism for collecting and pooling the money staked by bettors. In addition, a system must be in place to record the identities of bettors and their stakes, and to select the winners. Typically, lottery organizations distribute tickets through a network of distributors that includes newsstands, convenience stores, service stations, restaurants and bars, and fraternal and charitable organizations.