Congratulations to the four newest members of the Lottery Industry Hall of Fame.   The PGRI Lottery Industry ​Hall of Fame Ceremony was held Tuesday, Oct. 18, 5:00 pm Vancouver Convention Center West Level 3, Meeting Room 301

The 97 members of the PGRI Lottery Industry Hall of Fame have voted for and elected four industry leaders to be inducted into the Lottery Industry Hall of Fame for 2022. The Lottery Industry Hall of Fame was founded in 2005 as a means of honoring those who have done the most to promote excellence and integrity in our industry and make the world lottery industry the great success. The recipients of this award are all a credit to that ideal and are joining a select and distinguished group of world lottery industry professionals. Visit the “Awards” section of PublicGaming.com to read more about the Hall of Fame.  Directors Barden and Svitko were honored on August 31, 2022 at the ​Sheraton Time Square Hotel, New York.   Ms. Girandon and Mr Esposito will be honored​ on Tuesday, October 18, 2022 at 17:00 - 17:30; at the World Lottery Summit Vancouver: West Level 3 - Meeting Room 301 Vancouver Convention Centre West

PGRI Lottery Industry Hall of Fame Class of 2022

• David Barden

President & Chief Executive Office, New Mexico Lottery President, Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL)

David Barden has served as CEO of the New Mexico Lottery for the past eight years after first serving as its Interim CEO.  With more than 21 years of lottery experience, David specializes in positive change and industry innovation that have maximized revenue returns for three US lotteries:  the New Mexico Lottery Authority, Arkansas Scholarship Lottery, and the South Carolina Education Lottery.  In addition to serving as New Mexico’s CEO, David has served in several nationwide lottery industry positions including Chairman of the Powerball Product Group, Chairman of MUSL’s Legal Committee, Chairman of the Hot Lotto Game Group and NASPL Secretary.   Most recently, David was unanimously elected to the position of President of MUSL.  As a result of his experience with lottery start-ups, he has testified before legislative committees and an executive task force, providing his insight and assistance to those states contemplating lottery launches.

Prior to his appointment as CEO of the New Mexico Lottery, David served as the Vice President of the Arkansas Lottery where he was responsible for the initial startup, staffing, and oversight of lottery operations. David’s lottery career began in 2001 with eight years at the South Carolina Education Lottery, where he served as legal counsel for the Lottery until he was promoted to Director of Marketing and Product Development. As Director, he was responsible for the lottery’s online and instant games portfolio, including all marketing related activities.

From 1996 through 2001, David served as Senior Staff Attorney for the Office of the Clerk of the South Carolina Senate. He also served as Assistant Director of the largest law enforcement agency in South Carolina, the South Carolina Department of Public of Safety, from 1993 until 1996, where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the agency which had a budget in excess of $200 million and employed approximately 3,000 people.

David graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of South Carolina and a J.D. from the Ohio Northern School of Law. He is married and has two children.

• Luca Esposito

Executive Director, World Lottery Association; General Secretary of the Global Lottery Monitoring System (GLMS)

Luca Esposito holds a master’s degree in Computer Science and Telecommunication from the University of Calabria. He has been a technological consultant to various major global concerns, including Accenture, McKinsey & Company, and Cambridge Technology Partners.  He began his career in the lottery sector in 2009, when he joined IGT as Technology Director for central Europe. Here, he served the technological needs of gaming-industry clients in Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, and Luxembourg. In 2013, Luca was promoted to Country Manager for IGT, responsible for managing all operations, which included taking responsibility for profit, revenue, cash and quality targets, with overall responsibility for managing revenue and cost elements of IGT's profit & loss (P&L) within his jurisdictions.

Recognized for his vast knowledge of lottery and gaming technology, and of the unique needs of the state-authorized lottery and betting sector, Luca was recruited by the World Lottery Association (WLA), where he has served as Executive Director since November 2018. His deep understanding of sports betting and the issues around achieving sports integrity along with his natural leadership brought him additional responsibilities. On January 1, 2022, Luca became General Secretary of the Global Lottery Monitoring System (GLMS). He now serves both the WLA and GLMS in parallel.

• Romana Girandon

President & Chief Executive Officer, Loterija Slovenije (Slovenian National Lottery), 2nd Vice President of European Lotteries  

Building on her passion for creating high-achieving, inclusive and socially responsible teams, Romana has spent two decades in different leadership positions before becoming President of the Slovenian National Lottery in 2013. Since then, mainly through her continuous focus on mission-based culture, responsible player-centric innovation and high business standards, the company she leads has become a highly respected European lottery. As the head of a small but flexible and ambitious lottery Romana pursues forging collaborative partnerships across international lottery industry. Since 2019, Romana has been a Member of The European Lotteries (EL) Executive Committee and a Chair of the Corporate Social Responsibility and Responsible Gaming working group. In June 2021 she was elected 2nd Vice President of the Association. With EL she is helping towards a community of successful lotteries as high achieving organizations behaving in the most socially responsible way. She is also the Director of the regional association of lotteries. Holding a degree in Organizational Sciences and Human Resources, Romana is a certified Supervisory Board Member by the Slovenian Directors’ Association and holds an executive certificate in Circular Economy and Sustainability from the University of Cambridge. Prior to joining the Loterija Slovenije, Romana was with the American advertising agency Luna/TBWA, as a Managing Director in Slovenia. She is the recipient of several awards, with »Artemida« Award (for contribution to the development of female management in leadership positions) being her favorite. Privately, Romana volunteers as a licensed missing persons rescuer, along with her search & rescue dog.

• Drew Svitko

Executive Director, Pennsylvania Lottery, Chair of the Powerball Group

Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director Drew Svitko has worked in the lottery industry for 25 years, having served the Pennsylvania Lottery from 1997 to 2005 in a variety of positions in the marketing, research, finance, and security divisions. From 2005 to 2008, Drew worked as an account executive for instant ticket printer Oberthur Gaming Technologies, before returning to the Lottery as deputy executive director of marketing and product development.

Drew has been the executive director for the PA Lottery since February of 2015, where he currently leads a staff of more than 275 employees. Under his leadership, the Pennsylvania Lottery was named by Gaming Intelligence as North American Lottery Operator of the Year in 2021. The Lottery also reached record sales of more than $5 billion for the first time, and for the 10th consecutive year has generated profit of more than $1 billion for programs to help older Pennsylvanians. Additionally, under Drew’s leadership, the Pennsylvania Lottery’s online platform generated $1 billion in iLottery sales in the first two years after launching in May 2018.

Drew is leading the way in modernizing the Pennsylvania Lottery. In 2020, the Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 celebrated Drew as one of the most innovative and inspiring people working in the betting and gaming industry.  Drew also devotes time to serving the industry as the new Powerball® Product Group Chair. From 2020-2022 he served as Vice Chair of the Powerball Product Group and Chair of the MUSL Development Committee from 2019-2021.

Prior to working in the Lottery industry, Drew and his wife, Gretchen, owned and operated Subway restaurants. When he’s not working or volunteering his time in other capacities, Drew enjoys spending time with his wife, three sons, and his wirehaired pointing griffon, Whiskey. Drew is also an avid reader, and his hobbies include beekeeping, cooking, hunting, and making maple syrup.