Belcher targeting £100k+ profit

Former Guernsey Hockey chief executive Peter Stahelin has volunteered to deal with all the setting up of the LBG company which will run it, while Martin Belcher, the man driving the project, is pleased with progress, which also includes patronage from the Bailiff, Sir Richard Collas.

‘The minimum we want is £100,000 for sports in general, but I am very hopeful we will get way over that,’ said Belcher.

‘The lottery will happen on an annual basis and we will start selling tickets on 1 May and the draw will be mid-May next year,’ he added. ‘You’ve got to allow time for every sport to sell their tickets; rugby will be wanting to sell theirs in the winter, cricket in the summer,’ he said announcing that 21 separate sports or organisations had agreed to take part.

They do not include football or table tennis, which have declined the offer.

‘There is no limit on the number of tickets that can be sold and the way it is going to work is that the prize money has to be covered first.

‘After that we make a profit and that profit will be divided on a pro-rata basis,’ the former Sports Commission chairman added.

‘There are no overhead costs in terms of the prizes or management; everyone is doing it voluntarily.

‘Each sport can decide how it is going to spend the money.’

Instead of one high-cost cash prize there will be five new Fiat Abarths as five separate prizes, with the winners having the option of taking the cash alternative.

There will be extensive video promotion and the the lottery will have its own website.

Belcher is confident of the lottery’s success, even though a Jersey version failed to get off the ground.

‘One of the things Jersey said from the word go was to say they were going to sell the tickets at £150 a time, which we thought was a huge stretch. If I was selling them at £150 a time I’d probably sell three.’

LOTTERY FACTS

The Guernsey Sports and Arts Lottery will be run by an elected management committee.

A lottery application will be made.

The lottery to be on a 12-month sale time limit to allow seasonal sports to take part. First draw to take place May 2019.

Total fund prize and set-up costs would be in the region of £50,000, so 4,000 tickets will have to be sold to break even.

Tickets to be sold at £20 each or six for £100 if to the same person.

There will be no limit on number of tickets sold.

Each sport/art club to sell their own tickets and will receive funds pro-rata of ticket sales. Tickets will be distributed in small numbers initially and further tickets issued on return of sold tickets and money.

Prizes to include five small cars i.e. Fiat 500 Abarth (or cash alternative). This would be unique and will appeal to ticket purchasers more so than one big prize.

The lottery will run independently of the Guernsey Sports Commission.