Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > JAPANESE GOVERNMENT POLICIESIN EDUCATION, SCIENCE, SPORTSAND CULTURE1998 > MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH AND SPORTS CHAPTER1 SECTION5 2

The Sports Promotion Lottery System,or theSports Promotion Lottery(Soccer Lottery)wasproposed by the Sports Federation of Diet Members as a new policy to secure revenue sources forthe purpose of building a"lifelong sports society,"in which everyone can be closely familiar withsports and lead a healthy and active life at all times,developing top-level athletes to perform on theworld stage,and establishing a rich sports environment.The system was created through the"Sports Promotion Lottery Law," 1 submitted bymembers of the Diet,which passed in May1998.At present MESSC and the National Stadium andSchool Health Center of Japan are discussing thebasic system with the Health and Physical Education Council,aiming to launch sales in FY2000.

The Sports Promotion Lottery does not involve predicting each result of matches.Rather,it will be based on the predictions of more than ten match results of the"Sports Promotion Lottery Match Hosting Organization"selected by the Minister of Education,Science,Sports and Culture(the Japan Professional Football League[J League]will be the designated organization).The National Stadium and School Health Center of Japan will commission a financial institution and sell Sports Promotion Lottery tickets at100yen each.The plan of the Sports Federation of Diet Members is not to create excessive interest in gambling.For example,the chances of accurately matching all13predictions will be1.6million to one,the top prize will be set at100million yen,and winning tickets will account for less than50%of sales.Outline of the"Sports Promotion Policy"Initiated by the Sports Federation of Diet Members The Sports Federation of Diet Members(Chairman:Yoshio Sakurauchi,Member of the House of Representatives)drafted the Sports Promotion Policy outlined below in1994,to reform the Japanese sports environment and to allow mental release and enriched free time for the Japanese people.In order to realize this,revenue sources on a considerable scale are needed under the current difficult financial situation,so a proposal has been made to introduce the Sports Promotion Lottery system in soccer matches,a success in countries abroad.Creating regional sports environments

Creating an environment to develop world-class athletes

Figure1-19:Image of Lottery Slip for Making Predictions(mark sheet)

A more comprehensive lottery method will beestablished in the future,but the followingmethod is currently being considered:The bettorwill predict home wins,losses,extra time,etc.,for more than ten matches,fill in the appropriateboxes on the Lottery Slip(tentative name),thenpurchase a lottery ticket( see Figure1-19 ).

Less than50%of the sales money will bedisbursed as"less than15%will coverexpes,penses,and the remainder will be profit.Of theprofit,one-third will be allocated to the nationaltreasury,and will be appropriated for such areasas the healthy development of young people,education and culture,the preservation of thenatural environment and international sports exchanges.The remaining two-thirds will be allocated as subsidies for sports promotion.Theywill be shared equally between sports organizations and local governments including sports organizations invested by them in order to be appropriated to various projects for promotingsports responding to the needs of the Japanese( see Figure1-20 ).

Responding to fears that the Sports Promotion Lottery might have an undesirable influence on young people,it will be illegal to purchase or to have an adult purchase a Sports Promotion Lottery ticket if under19years old.People knowingly selling tickets to those under19years old will also be prosecuted,and in the case where it is determined that this has had a serious effect on the education of children,the Minister of Education,Science,Sports and Culture will be able to order a suspension of the conduct of business.

Sports Promotion Lotteries in Other Countries Soccer lotteries have a long and traditional history in Europe and South America.These lotteries combine gathering small"contributions"by selling the lottery"dream"with the fun of guessing match results.The most popular form of these lotteries is to predict the match result sins,losses,draws rom ten different matches,but more recently,lotteries in which the bettor chooses the total number of goals from a fixed set of matches are also being introduced.The United Kingdom introduced a lottery in1923.The profits account for part of the revenue sources allocated to the development of sports facilities in local regions.The lottery,the"Totocalcio",instituted in1946in Italy,was organized by the Italian National Olympic Committee and is famous throughout the world.The lottery is promoted with the phrase,"Half for the children,half for your dreams",and the larger part of it is contributed to the sports promotion budget,for subsidies to sports organizations,comprehensive sports facilities,and aspiring athletes.More recently,in1985,the soccer lottery,"le lotto sportif",was established in France.The profits are allocated to the sports promotion fund and are appropriated for sports promotion projects.

Lottery booth in Germany