National Lottery down for all players - when will it be back online?
Players haven't been able to buy tickets or check results in shops across the UK since 11 pm on Saturday night following the Lotto and Thunderball draws – so when will the system be back up?
The National Lottery website and app have also been down over the same period. Players can still buy Scratchcards and see the latest draws.
Luckily, the system is planned to be back up and working by later this morning, according to operator Allwyn.
The pause is allowing Allwyn to transfer and upgrade the National Lottery's gaming and retail systems to new platforms.
The Czech-based Allwyn group – which took over the 10-year licence to run the lottery from Camelot in February last year – said the systems and in-store terminals powering The National Lottery dated back to 2009, 'before iPads, Uber and Instagram', which now needed to be modernised to deliver on 'ambitious' plans for a National Lottery 'fit for the future'.
Allwyn chief executive Andria Vidler said: 'This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver The National Lottery that the UK deserves.
'We're making unprecedented and much-needed changes, which will move us closer to achieving our vision for The National Lottery, restoring its magic and significantly increasing its positive impact on lives across the UK.
'These major upgrades will mean short-term disruption for players and our retail partners, but they will allow us to deliver on our promise to bring new, exciting games, a better player experience and our commitment to double returns to Good Causes from £30 million to £60 million every week by the end of the 10-year licence.'
The switchover has been beset by delays after Allwyn took over the licence, which has held back the launch of new draw-based games. More Trending
It was unable to switch to a new technology provider after agreeing to extend the contract for the existing supplier, International Games Technology (IGT).
IGT had challenged the Gambling Commission's decision to award Allwyn the 10-year licence in court, but later dropped the legal action.
Allwyn has previously admitted that delays to the new games it had hoped to introduce in 2024 will hold back the amount of money it can give to good causes in the early part of its 10-year licence.
But the group remained committed to its long-term goal to double money for good causes, despite falling short of early targets.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
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