'It won't be you' says Camelot

Camelot is introducing new games to increase sales

Players of the new Lotto game would be lucky to win £10, according to the boss of the National Lottery's operator Camelot.

The public have a slim chance of winning with odds of hitting the jackpot one in 14 million, said chief executive Dianne Thompson.

People have realised that though it could be you, it probably won't be

Dianne Thompson, Camelot

She said that the original slogan of "It could be you" had given false hope to players and many had realised this.

"Eight years later, people have realised that though it could be you, it probably won't be," she said.

And she conceded that players of Lotto, the newly re-named lottery game, "would be lucky to win a tenner".

Ms Thompson said the only way to halt declining sales in Lotto was to make the game fun.

Price increases

Camelot is spending £72m over the next year, marketing the new Lotto image with the aim of halting the decline in the number of people playing the draw.

She said: "We have to put the fun back in so if people don't win they enjoy playing. "

Addressing the annual dinner of the Chartered Institute of Marketing in Birmingham, she said that if the UK joined the single currency, the cost of a lottery ticket could rise.

However, deciding an appropriate ticket price could prove difficult.

"The dilemma is if I put it up to £1.10 most sellers would have to give 90p change on £2," she told the Birmingham Post.

"The only way to make it work would be to make it £2 or £1.50."

New games

However a Camelot spokesman said there were no current plans to change the price of lottery tickets.

"Ultimately, any price change would be the decision of our regulator, the National Lottery Commission," he added.

Camelot said Ms Thompson's comments had been taken out of context and were addressing the perception that £10 Lotto prizes were not worth winning.

"The odds of winning the jackpot on Lotto are one in 14 million with the odds of winning £10 being one in 57," they said in a statement.

Dianne Thompson: Fun games

"However, every week millions of people win on National Lottery games with around one million people winning £10 on Lotto alone.

"We are introducing a new draw in July which will offer big prizes by matching fewer numbers."

Lotto Hotpicks is linked to the main Lotto draw and aims to increase the chances of winning bigger prizes for matching fewer numbers.

Players can win £40 by matching two numbers, £450 with three and £7,000 with four.

The aim is to give players more opportunities to win bigger prizes for fewer numbers.