Chris Lyman has confirmed that he will depart his c-level position at Allwyn UK, the operator of the National Lottery.
Lyman joined the company as its Chief Operating Officer back in April 2023. His LinkedIn page states that he vacated the position in June 2026, but he has only just confirmed it in the past 24 hours.
His three year tenure at Allwyn UK came at a transformational time for both the company and the National Lottery, with Allwyn taking on the fourth 10 year licence in February 2024.
The following two years have seen the firm take control of National Lottery management and initiate extensive modernisation programmes, including an upgrade to retail systems and the launch of new products.
He leaves Allwyn amid the rollout of Powerball UK, a localised version of the hugely popular multi-state lottery product in the US, which has the potential for jackpots numbering in the billions of dollars or pounds, on rare occasions.
“It has been an honour and a privilege to be part of the National Lottery and the Allwyn team over the past two and a half years,” Lyman wrote on LinkedIn.
“During that time, we’ve delivered retail and digital transformation on a scale previously unseen in the industry, introduced innovation to Lotto, and launched Powerball for UK players.”
As COO, Lyman worked closely with Andria Vidler, Allwyn UK’s Chief Executive Officer, and the remainder of the company’s executive leadership team as it pressed ahead with National Lottery modernisation.
He described his part in this process as “one of the most rewarding and challenging chapters of my career”, adding that he is “incredibly proud of everything we’ve achieved together”.
“I wish the team every success for the future,” he continued.
Prior to joining Allwyn, Lyman worked for Lotto New Zealand for over 10 years, first as COO between April 2013-November 2017 and then as CEO from December 2018 until joining Allwyn in 2023.
His LinkedIn now reads his profession as Managing Director of Radburn Consulting, which Lyman has revealed will focus on “supporting organisations in the lottery sector through consultancy and advisory work”.
However, his social post announcing his departure from Allwyn stated that he is going to enjoy a “well-earned break before beginning the next chapter”.