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Another Deficit For Japan's Soccer Lottery

JAPAN -- As reported by Asahi Shimbun: "Japan's soccer-lottery operation will likely run into a deficit for its second consecutive year. It thus will be unable to provide grants to sports organizations, which is its primary purpose.

"Total sales have declined from 60.4 billion yen in 2001, when the Toto soccer lottery was launched, to 40.8 billion yen in 2002 and 20.2 billion yen in 2003. Sales this year have so far slumped to 15.5 billion yen.

"In line with that drop, grants have shrunk from 5.8 billion to 2.6 billion yen. In 2003, when the operation edged into the red, the lottery operator, the National Agency for the Advancement of Sports and Health, managed to save 600 million yen through unclaimed prize money and by cutting spending. But this year, it cannot expect to squeeze more than 100 million to 200 million yen that way.

"...The law regulating the soccer lottery is up for review a year from now, seven years after it began..."

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