A lottery is an arrangement in which prizes are allocated by a process that relies wholly on chance. The prizes in such arrangements may be cash, goods or services. The first European lotteries appeared in 15th-century Burgundy and Flanders where towns tried to raise money to fortify their defenses or aid the poor. Francis I of France learned of the idea while visiting Italy and authorized the first French lottery in 1539.

People in the United States spent $100 billion on lottery tickets in 2021, making it the country’s most popular form of gambling. State governments promote the games as ways to raise revenue. That’s certainly true, but the benefits of those extra billions in state budgets need scrutiny.

Buying lottery tickets can cost consumers thousands in foregone savings on things like retirement or college tuition. And the gamblers who play lotteries as a group are disproportionately lower-income, less educated, nonwhite, and male.

While the lottery is a form of gambling, it’s also a useful tool for states to make sure the distribution of resources is fair and balanced. For example, the NBA uses a lottery to determine which team gets the top overall pick in the draft. The teams with the worst records have equal odds of getting the first pick, and it goes down from there — a mediocre team like the New Orleans Pelicans has about a 0.5% chance of landing that top spot. That’s not the best way to distribute talent, but it’s a good tool for the league to use.