National Lottery Scratchcards

An Introduction to National Lottery Scratchcards

The Irish National Lottery offers a variety of scratchcards as part of its games portfolio, giving players the chance to win instant cash prizes by purchasing games across a wide range of retail stores.

These scratchcards come in different themes and price points, ranging from low-cost options with smaller prizes and more expensive cards that offer the chance to win larger sums of money, as well as special holiday-themed games such as Christmas scratchcards.

Although gameplay varies from game-to-game, play is relatively straightforward: purchase a scratchcard and then scratch off the cover to reveal the corresponding symbols or numbers. If the revealed symbols or numbers match the winning combinations outlined on the card, the player wins the prize associated with that combination or winning symbols.

Types of National Lottery Scratchcards

The National Lottery Scratchcards come in several designs and a wide range of different price points between €1 and €15 per game.

• €1 Scratchcards
• €2 Scratchcards
• €3 Scratchcards
• €4 Scratchcards
• €5 Scratchcards
• €10 Scratchcards
• €15 Scratchcards
• €20 Scratchcards

The odds of winning vary across different cards and the selection prizes vary with each card. Additionally, there are different prizes and total number of prizes available across scratchcards of the same price point.

2024 National Lottery Scratchcards

2024 brings about a lot of change for the National Lottery, and could potentially impact the range of games and line-ups of National Lottery scratchcards from years gone past. In February 2024, the current National Lottery operators - Camelot - are to be replaced with Allwyn, who has experience running national lotteries from around the rest of the world.

Starting off this year, we can expect to see similar National Lottery scratchcards that players love (or loathe), but could change significantly over the year. At the time of writing this, there is little public knowledge about what will or won't happen, so make sure to come back regularly to check for updates.

New National Lottery Scratchcards

New National Lottery scratchcards come out approximately every month. There is no set date or frequency for new scratchcard releases, but over the past few years, any number between 2-12 scratchcards have been released.

Only recently has the National Lottery started giving a public preview of scratchcards that are going to be released. This information is uploaded to their website, and usually indicates that the scratchcards will be released the following month. Prior to this, the only way you could find our about up and coming new scratchcards was via information that is sent exclusively to retailers that sell National Lottery scratchcards in their stores.

New scratchcards are typically released on a Monday or Tuesday if there has been a bank holiday. To check which scratchcards have just been released, you can check the National Lottery website, or come back and check our site for weekly updates.

How Old Do You Have to Be to Play National Lottery Scratchcards?

In the United Kingdom, the age requirement for purchasing and playing National Lottery Scratchcards has recently changed from 16 to 18 years old.

The change, implemented in April 2021, aligns with a growing awareness and effort to promote responsible gambling and protect younger individuals from potential gambling-related harm. This age restriction is part of the broader regulatory framework governing gambling activities in the UK, ensuring that such activities are conducted in a responsible, safe, and controlled manner. Retailers are required to enforce this age limit, and failure to comply can result in penalties.