The Wisconsin Lottery lost $212,000 after it pulled out of a special drawing offering tickets and travel to the 2004 Super Bowl.
The drawing was organized by a group that included NFL Hall of Famer Lynn Swann, according to an audit released Wednesday.
Wisconsin Lottery spokesman Andrew Bohage said the state has considered legal action to recoup the money it lost after the NFL objected to the drawing. But he said lottery officials have held back because they are unsure if a suit would succeed.
“We’re not certain whether legal action would be another case of throwing good money after bad,” Bohage said.
Wisconsin joined 17 other states in the Multi-State Lottery Association in 2003 for a special Powerball drawing to attend the 2004 Super Bowl in Houston and watch the game from a luxury suite. People who bought $10 worth of Powerball tickets received a mail-in entry for the drawing for Super Bowl prizes.
Wisconsin bought nine prize packages valued at $26,000 that included travel and hotel accommodations, two tickets to the suite, commemorative jackets and cash, according to the audit.
But the NFL sent a cease-and-desist order to one of the states offering the prize packages, saying tickets to the game cannot be used for promotional purposes without prior consent from the league.
Wisconsin officials decided to end the offer after considering the costs of retooling its advertising campaign to comply with NFL demands for promoting the drawing.
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