Ravens, Maryland Lottery Unveil Plans For $5 Scratch-Off Ticket

Winners Can Also Win Lifetime Season Tickets To Ravens Games And Game-Day Suites

The Ravens and Maryland Lottery yesterday unveiled a new Ravens-themed scratch-off ticket. The $5 "Ravens Cash Fantasy" ticket will offer prizes ranging from $5 to $1M. It launches ahead of the August 13 preseason home opener against the Redskins and will be sold at every Ravens game at M&T Bank Stadium, as well as at more than 4,000 lottery retail locations statewide (Ravens). In Baltimore, Laura Smitherman notes prizes "include lifetime season tickets to Ravens games ... and game-day suites." Maryland Lottery Dir Buddy Roogow said that winners "could even score autographed and unwashed jerseys." Ravens President Dick Cass said that he "hopes the partnership will help boost the Ravens fan base." Cass: "We're a very young NFL franchise and we're trying to build the franchise" (Baltimore SUN, 6/18). In Maryland, Andy Rosen noted the Ravens are "looking at the lottery agreement as a way to spread the team's brand around parts of Maryland where they normally get less exposure." Cass: "We're going to have our logo on these scratch-off tickets throughout the state. This is another opportunity to grow our fan base" (MDDAILYRECORD.com, 6/17). Also in Maryland, Aaron Wilson notes NFL teams "have been looking to generate extra revenue due to a languishing economy and have been laying off employees and cutting back on expenses." Economic estimates for the Ravens' profits through a lottery deal have "consistently been placed at $1[M] annually," while annual revenue for the state of Maryland has been estimated at $3M (CARROLL COUNTY TIMES, 6/18).

DOWN BY THE BAYOU: In New Orleans, Brian Allee-Walsh cited a source as saying that officials from the Saints and Louisiana Lottery Corp. are likely "to announce a new partnership on a scratch-off ticket featuring the team's logo in the very near future" (NOLA.com, 6/17).