Scientific Games has secured a new contract with the Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC) to modernize the lottery's in-store retail infrastructure across a network of more than 5,000 retailer locations spanning Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The deal extends a partnership dating to 1999 and adds hardware, software, and AI-driven analytics capabilities to WCLC's retail layer.
What's Being Deployed
Under the contract, Scientific Games will deliver its WAVE retailer point-of-sale terminals, PlayCentral self-service kiosks — which incorporate AI and advanced analytics — and updated retailer terminal software. The PlayCentral kiosk platform is designed to offload transaction volume from staffed counters, improve throughput, and surface data-driven insights for lottery operators managing large retail footprints. The WAVE POS terminals replace legacy point-of-sale hardware with a cloud-connected, next-generation system purpose-built for lottery retail environments.
For retail operators in the convenience, grocery, and fuel-and-convenience segments that anchor WCLC's distribution network, the upgrade translates to faster transaction processing, reduced friction at the point of sale, and self-service optionality that can shorten queue times during peak periods — metrics that matter for both lottery revenue performance and the broader in-store experience.
Scale and Commercial Context
WCLC recorded more than $1.56 billion in sales in 2025 — the second highest in the organization's history — generating more than $481 million in returns to its member governments. That revenue base underscores the commercial stakes of retail modernization: even incremental improvements in terminal uptime, transaction speed, or self-service adoption at 5,000 locations compound meaningfully across a multi-billion-dollar sales base.
Scientific Games now provides retail systems and terminals to more than 70 lotteries worldwide, including three Canadian lotteries, and has recently executed large-scale technology modernization projects across Canada, the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. The company was also recently awarded a contract for WCLC's iLottery digital platform, giving it end-to-end retail and digital infrastructure across the organization.
Operator and Executive Perspective
"Strategic investments at retail play a key role in delivering relevant products and experiences for our players while maximizing value for the governments and communities we serve," said Chris Santschi, President and CEO of WCLC, noting the initiative is aimed at strengthening retail performance, enhancing player engagement, and supporting long-term revenue sustainability.
Michael Cardell, Senior VP of Commercial Strategy and Growth, Americas for Scientific Games, emphasized that the integrated retail ecosystem is designed to give lottery operators agility alongside better player-facing experiences and stronger retailer performance metrics.
For hospitality and foodservice operators in the convenience and grocery channels, lottery retail modernization initiatives like this one increasingly parallel the same POS and self-service kiosk investment cycles seen in quick-service restaurant technology upgrades — where reducing friction at the point of transaction directly lifts both throughput and average ticket. The cross-sector convergence of AI-enabled kiosk platforms is a trend worth watching across retail foodservice and C-store operations.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
