WCLC Exposed — Lots of Promise, Missing Functionalities
WCLC Review
The Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC) is a pretty popular entity if you live in that part of the world and you like games of luck.
Canada, as a whole, is well-known for digital innovation in the world of lotteries. Many local entities have their own websites and online platforms, facilitating the acquisition of those much-coveted lottery tickets. Unfortunately, Western Canadians aren’t in a lot of luck when it comes to such possibilities. Chances for online ticket buying are pretty limited, and there are lots of conditions.
Needless to say, that’s a pity, especially when the rest of Canada is doing oh-so well in the realm of online ticket sales.
So, what exactly is WCLC doing and not doing through its online platform? While local players have access to a couple of good services, there’s still a lot left to be desired.
Find out why people prefer 24Lottos to WCLC
Games at WCLC.com
The Western Canada Lottery is the entity that organizes and supervises the execution of all locally-represented games of luck.
So, whether you’re interested in WCLC Lotto Max or WCLC 649, they are the guys for you. Not only that, the portfolio of the Western Canada Lottery Corporation brags a range of additional opportunities like Daily Grand, Western Max, Western 6/49, Keno, Poker Lotto, and others.
Now, the big question remains unanswered – can you play the WCLC lottery online? The WCLC website itself does NOT make such opportunities available. And if you take one look at it, you’ll know that you have to keep your expectations pretty low. The design is severely outdated, and it definitely doesn’t look like the official online representation of an actual lottery entity.
If you are a Manitoba resident, you’re the only one in luck as far as Western Canadian lotteries go. There is a platform called PlayNow.com, and it allows those from Manitoba to buy Lotto Max, Lotto 6/49, Western Max, and Western 6/49 tickets online.
BCLC rather than WCLC operates that platform. Hence, the decision is once again made on a regional level to offer players some convenience and modernity.
Everyone else living in Western Canada is for now restricted to old-school, offline ticket buying. We really hope that the situation will change shortly as WCLC has some really popular and beloved games in its portfolio.
WCLC and Claiming Your Prizes
Since WCLC winners do not have an opportunity to play the lottery online, they’re also severely limited when claiming a prize (surprise, surprise!).
Other than that, the prize claim procedures are quite straightforward.
Sums of up to 1,000 Canadian dollars can be claimed immediately at any lottery retail venue. The player will need to present the winning ticket. Sums of over 1,000 dollars will need to be cashed out at the WCLC prize payout office.
Prize claims by mail are also possible. If you’re interested in any of these options, you can give the WCLC hotline a call to learn more about the respective procedure.
Who Can Play?
WCLC lottery games are open to anyone who meets the local legal requirements.
If you live in Western Canada and you’re considered an adult by law, you are in luck. Ticket purchases are readily available.
Sadly, you cannot buy online tickets unless you live in Manitoba. The online platform that works locally does not accept entries from outside of the province. If you live in another part of Canada or you are a resident of another country, you will have no opportunity to test out the lucrative nature of Western Canadian lottery games.
WCLC Lotto: Who’s Behind It?
The Western Canada Lottery Corporation is obviously the entity behind the WCLC website.
WCLC was set up as a non-profit organization back in 1974. It operates lottery and gaming-related activities, including sports betting on top of the range of draw-style games.
As of now, its members are the governments of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.
All of this information can help you rest assured that the website and the games linked to it are legit. WCLC is run under strict governmental regulations about playing lotteries and distributing prizes. There are whatsoever no red flags or reasons to worry.
The same applies to the PlayNow portal, as it works under strict regulations in Manitoba to ensure fairness and transparency.
Other Bits and Pieces
There are several other characteristics worth putting under our magnifying glass.
The first one is the so-called WCLC pools. A pool is a form of group play that allows multiple people to put their resources together in an attempt to win bigger (and more) prizes from the lottery.
Group play is officially defined under the WCLC terms and conditions, which is a good thing. There have been numerous instances of syndicate play or pools falling apart after winning. One member will end up claiming the money for themselves, which will eventually contribute to lengthy and costly legal battles.
WCLC pools start with the signing of a Group Buy Agreement (available via the website) that defines who’s buying what and how the money will be split later on. Obviously, this document doesn’t prevent a pool member from acting shady later on, but it gives the “partnership” a framework.
WCLC offers another interesting feature that’s called “play by subscription.” Play by subscription is available to both individual fans of the lottery and pools.
WCLC lotto makes it possible to engage in advance ticket buying for a period of up to a year. Subscriptions are available for Lotto Max, Lotto 6/49, Western Max, Western 6/49, and Extra. Luckily, a subscription can be bought online. Keep in mind, however, that some time will be needed for the processing of the subscription. As a result, a player may not be entered into an upcoming drawing. A single subscription can be activated for anywhere between 14 and 104 drawings. There are also combo offers, allowing the purchase of subscription packages for more than one game.
Why You Should Register with WCLC
Pros:
An official regional entity that offers all of the local Canadian games
Manitoba residents have the option to buy their lottery tickets online
There are some nice added perks for dedicated lottery players
Pools (group play) are available
Subscriptions make it possible for the most dedicated lottery fans to ensure advance play in their favorite game for up to one year
A pretty simple and straightforward prize claim procedure
Why You Shouldn’t Register with WCLC
Cons:
Online ticket buying is still not possible in the vast majority of the Western Canada territory
There are restrictions for online play in Manitoba, and lotto enthusiasts out of the state cannot participate
The WCLC website design is very dated and lacking in functionality
Is WCLCorporation Legit?
As the final part of our research, we tried to find WCLC reviews online to discover whether someone has had an incredibly great or a pretty disappointing experience with the portal. We didn’t come across any major red flags or serious complaints. If you have a certain kind of experience that you’d like to share with everyone, you can leave that information in a comment within this article.
So, to sum things up – WCLC has a lot of promise, but it misses the mark in more than one way. This was a surprise to us, especially considering how other regional agents in Canada are performing within the realm of digitization.
Should you give WCLC lotteries a try? The following list of advantages and shortcomings will help you make up your mind.
The chances are that things will change in the future. Right now, WCLC does not have that much to offer in terms of a WCLC app or a one-stop-shop WCLC home page. If you want to give WCLC lotteries a try, you should definitely go ahead. Everything appears to be legit, even though WCLC still sticks to an old-school operational approach.
Dwayne Thomas
Completely scam non for profit liars, all games are rigged beyond belief! Would rather take my money and play online and trust those one in Malta then to gamble in this country as they have lost there minds to understand what’s fair and what’s just a complete scam. It’s a selection not random at all.
Will Gerrard
I bought a western scratch ticket and revealed 3 western lotto max symbols in the same game. Store clerk told me after the ticket printed off to contact the wclc as my prize was greater then what she could pay. I spoke to the wclc and after reading off 25 numbers on the back of the ticket the woman said congratulations as I won a new car or $35,000 in cash. I choose to take the money. they had me wait two weeks to claim the prize and I went out to claim it. I unfortunately did not have proper Identification so the woman told me that due to the large amount I would need proper identification. I sent away for my I.D and when received I called and informed them that I had received my I.D. went back out to Saint Albert and was a totally different experience as the first time out they wanted to take me to get my photo with the large $35000 dollar cheque and this time I was brought right to the claims counter where I passed a woman my ticket and she looked at me and said that will be $208 dollars.. I spent more money in getting my birth certificate and the gas spent going out there then the promised amount of a new car “base model” as I was told!! “wasn’t sure of the brand” she said but all she new was it was the base model of the car chosen by the lotto corp. When I told the woman that I was already out here and that I was told 3 different times by government “trained” lottery commision workers that I had won a new car or $35000 and that there had to of been some mistake the woman looked at me and said “no mistake”. My response to this lady was well I would be in contact with a lawyer because of the misrepresentation and the lack of professionalism and she looked at me and said “that’s what they all say” I left there thinking to myself how could this have ever happened to anyone else and if so how many people have they ripped off prior to me… By far the worst experience one could go through after I was told on three different occasions after each time reading off 25 numbers on the back of the ticket and 4 numbers off the front of the ticket was told that I had won. Now surely as trained government employees you would think that they could tell the difference between a new car or $35000 dollars surely we could hire chimpanzee’s that could differentiate between $35000 or a new car and $208 bucks and they would probably be very happy with half the pay!!!! Worst business practice I have ever seen and the and as a consumer the right to be informed and have clear information giving was grossly miss communicated and over seen and some should be held responsible. I give the worst rating ever to the worst scam business I as a consumer give my money to to be lied to and misled.
Razor Lenfesty
This happens with the RNG more times than you can Imagine! Lotto Max Fri Dec 29,2023 my Quick Pick Numbers 02 05 10 15 28 37 43 – RNG Drawn Numbers 03 06 09 25 30 36 42 – See how many numbers are off by one number! It happens all the time! Do Other Players NOTICE THIS ?
Razor Lenfesty
Scrap the RNG! Go back to the ball drop where everyone can see the draws, this Random Number Generator behind closed doors is a money grab, last lotto 649 Gold Ball winner was when the last ball was drawn, 30 balls and the 30th ball was the winner! Rigged Hmmm, ticket sales go up and payout prizes go down, Not Fair What So Ever! Is it possible for Random Number Generator to pick certain Numbers, YES it has happened, Hasn’t been proved in Canada Yet But has been proved in the US, Google Eddie Tipton in Iowa or Go to Lottery Codex and see for yourself! There has been more free play and $2 winners than ever before! Scrap the RNG…..
Bonny Ingrouville
I have been playing the lotto for years. Max and 6-49 both regional games and national. I have played Poker Lotto since its inception. What a horrible game that is. I won 80 dollars once, most of the time nothing. I live in Regina and i watch the wins very closely for Poker Lotto. Notice how often tiny little hamlets in the province win again and again and yet a city the size of Regina rarely wins anything major. And the nightly draw; biggest joke ever!! Today i read questions and reviews from 2018 (just what i found online) from the Atlantic provinces. Those same reviews and questions hold true today, 5 yrs later. Ontario, Quebec and Alberta win the huge jackpots. The rest of us all subsidize those wins. So many people have requested a televised ball drop in real time on You Tube, which would be so easy to do. And in addition, people have requested that Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and BC have their own lotto. Then Manitoba, Sask., and Atlantic provinces have our own lotto games. Perhaps we don’t have the population per province for jackpots in the high millions but together we would see wins never experienced before being lumped in with Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and BC. I do feel that WCLC has more control over the games than we could ever know. With computerization and a programmers skill, just about anything is possible. The time is well overdue for WCLC to be forthcoming with the public. After all if everyone stopped playing huge revenues would be lost. So please, be FAIR and spread the wealth or make positive changes!!