US lottery ticket salesDungeons & Dragons players worldwide
Dungeons & Dragons players worldwide and U.S. lottery ticket sales have, between 2017 and 2023, risen together at a correlation of 0.974. Tabletop fantasy roleplay and state-sanctioned gambling, two apparently different fantasies of a better outcome, climbing the same curve. Both are, in their own way, dice-based.
D&D's player base grew from around 14 million in 2017 to over 50 million by 2023, boosted by Stranger Things, Critical Role, the pandemic's online play explosion, and a fifth edition that genuinely worked for new players. U.S. lottery ticket sales rose from around $80 billion in 2017 to over $113 billion by 2023, driven by record Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots and the post-pandemic expansion of retail gaming. Both trends are the same American impulse expressed in different registers: the scratch-off buyer and the dungeon master both want, at minimum, the small probability of an interesting outcome.
Six years of two lines rising together can describe a country paying more for dice and scratch-offs. Both hobbies are, technically, odds.
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Want to learn more about why correlations like “US lottery ticket sales” vs “Dungeons & Dragons players worldwide” don't prove causation? Read our guide to statistical thinking.
