A competition based on chance, in which numbered tickets are sold and prizes given to the holders of numbers drawn at random. It is usually organized by a state or a charity. The money raised is intended to benefit a particular project, usually some form of public works or social welfare program.

People simply like to gamble, and lottery advertising exploits that basic human impulse. But there’s more to the story than that: Lotteries dangle the promise of instant riches in an era of inequality and limited social mobility. And they entice us to spend money that we could put toward a more productive goal, such as college tuition or a down payment on a house.

Each state has its own laws regulating how lottery games are conducted, and most delegate the operation to a special agency or public corporation. The agency may hire retailers to sell tickets and redeem winnings, train those employees, assist them in promoting the games, and ensure that both retailers and players comply with state laws.

The first recorded lottery to distribute prize money was held in the Low Countries in the 15th century, for raising funds for town fortifications and to aid the poor. But making decisions and determining fates by casting lots is older than that, dating back to biblical times and ancient Greek and Roman mythology. The modern lottery is an enormously popular enterprise and has become one of the world’s largest industries.