Allwyn UK, the incoming operator of The National Lottery, announced the appointment of Heart & Science as its preferred media partner for the upcoming Fourth National Lottery Licence, which starts in February 2024.

The appointment follows a competitive pitch process, and Hearts & Science – which is part of Omnicom Media Group (OMG) – will be working with immediate effect preparing for the National Lottery Licence handover early next year.

Allwyn’s Global Head of Media, Ross Sergeant, said: “Hearts & Science has been able to provide a unique perspective paired with innovative approaches to strategy, planning and buying. I believe this is a new kind of media agency – an agency rooted in the science, which is truly pursuing the creative and innovative opportunities that media brings us today.”

Garrett O’Reilly, CEO of Hearts & Science, said: “We’re hugely excited to have been appointed by Allwyn to assist in ushering The National Lottery into a new era – helping to reach and connect consumers with this amazing force for good. Allwyn’s digital innovation and creativity ambitions speak to our own values; as does its stance on social value, with Allwyn committed to, among other things, taking on a leadership role in developing responsible practices within media, as well as creating a new standard for protecting players.

“As they look to transform and futureproof the brand, our mandate is to deliver modern media solutions – powered by the Omni marketing orchestration system – that will accelerate that journey and build connections with players that go beyond the point of purchase. By selecting Hearts, Allwyn is making a statement of intent to the industry – demonstrating it really does want to do things differently and bring transformational thinking to The National Lottery.”

Ross Sergeant added: “We were particularly impressed by the Hearts & Science team’s logical and clear approach toward finding and testing innovations in this space. We have complete confidence that Hearts & Science brings the scale and operational capability – as well as industry-leading trading and commercial practices – needed as we look to evolve The National Lottery over the next decade. We very much look forward to building our partnership with them.”

This appointment continues the momentum that Hearts & Science has built both in the UK and globally over the last year. In the UK, it has delivered over £200 million in net new business billings through wins including Jaguar Land Rover, Mulberry, Tropicana Brands and now Allwyn.

Media adviser, Ebiquity, worked with Allwyn to run the pitch process. The incumbent agency, iProspect, under current National Lottery operator, Camelot, will continue media strategy, planning and buying for The National Lottery until the end of January 2024.