Nigeria’s Supreme Court ruled that states have authority to regulate lottery and gaming activities, according to the source. It said the decision invalidates the National Lottery Act in its entirety and places lottery regulation outside the 1999 Constitution’s Exclusive Legislative List.
The ruling changes the stated basis for regulating lottery and gaming across Nigeria’s states.
The day’s most important stories, free. One email a day.
Nigeria's betting operators must now navigate up to 37 separate state jurisdictions after a November 2024 Supreme Court ruling removed the National Lottery Regulatory Commission's nationwide authority. The Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria introduced a reciprocity licensing framework in May 2025, though questions remain over its legal basis. Industry estimates put participation at around 60 million Nigerians.
Lagos State attorney general Lawal Pedro told a press briefing that the proposed Central Gaming Bill is unconstitutional and conflicts with a Supreme Court judgment reserving lottery, gaming and betting regulation to the states. He urged the Senate to decline concurrence with the bill, which would repeal the National Lottery Act and regulate online gaming nationwide.
Nigeria’s Federation of State Gaming Regulators opposed the Central Gaming Bill 2025, which has cleared its third reading and would create a national framework for online and remote gaming. The federation said the proposal revives federal powers over gaming that the Supreme Court previously rejected; the bill would give a National Gaming Commission licensing authority.
The Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria met on 28 November 2024 to discuss a Supreme Court ruling on gaming and lottery oversight. The ruling invalidated the National Lottery Act’s claim to regulate gaming and lotteries nationwide and affirmed state jurisdiction, according to the federation’s account. Representatives from 24 member states attended.
Nigeria’s House of Representatives is pushing a Central Gaming Bill that would place games of chance under federal control, despite a Supreme Court ruling that state governments should regulate them. Legal expert Obinna Akpuchukwu said the proposal would be unconstitutional and argued that constitutional amendment would be required to establish federal oversight.