# North Macedonia State Lottery contract controversy > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/north-macedonia-state-lottery-contract-controversy > Updated: 2026-09-10T08:11:16.000Z. Sources: 24. Developments: 2. The North Macedonian State Lottery has faced scrutiny regarding its contract with the company Avalon to organize celebrations for the 35th anniversary of national independence. To fulfill the contract, the Lottery issued a public call for offers under the Law on Sponsorship and Donations, a process that allowed it to bypass standard public procurement systems. Avalon, through its company Stardust, was the only entity to respond to the call, which required ‘A-class’ international artists. Following the contract award, the political party Levica alleged financial mismanagement and favoritism. The party highlighted a payment of 1,850,610 denars made to Stardust DOOEL in February, noting that the company was selected as the sole candidate for the independence program only two months later. Levica further claimed the State Lottery has been used as a political tool, citing various payments to influencers and associations linked to relatives of security personnel and former advisors. In response to ongoing questions regarding the transparency of these contracts, government spokesperson Marija Miteva clarified that no state budget funds were used for the festivities. She stated that the 300 million denars used for the events, which included a performance by David Guetta, were sourced from the State Lottery’s undistributed profits from 2024. Political tensions have since expanded to include broader economic disputes. While Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski reported that foreign direct investment has reached approximately 1.4 billion euros over the last 24.5 months, opposition leaders from SDSM have challenged the government's economic narrative. The SDSM accused the administration of increasing public debt by roughly 4 billion euros in two years and reiterated demands for transparency regarding the use of the approximately 5 million euros in lottery profits for the independence celebrations. ## Claims - Venko Filipče accused the government of misusing funds for the 35th independence anniversary celebrations. (disputed by 3 sources) - Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski previously claimed the events cost citizens zero denars. (disputed by 3 sources) - The independence celebrations cost approximately 5 million euros. (corroborated by 3 sources) - The State Lottery, which is 100 percent state-owned, was tasked with organizing the program. (corroborated by 3 sources) - The government entrusted the organization of the celebration to the State Lottery on April 28. (single source) - A public call for bids was issued two days after the government decision using the Law on Sponsorships and Donations rather than the public procurement system. (single source) - The bid deadline for the event organization was five working days. (single source) - The program included performances by artists such as David Guetta and Jose Carreras. (single source) ## Timeline ### 2026-09-10: Levica party alleges State Lottery fund mismanagement The Levica party has accused the State Lottery of North Macedonia of distributing millions in public funds to politically connected entities and companies linked to the Avalon group without transparency. 3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/levica-party-alleges-state-lottery-fund-mismanagement ### 2026-09-09: North Macedonia faces political dispute over economic data and event funding North Macedonia faces political disputes over economic claims and the 5 million euro funding of independence celebrations via State Lottery profits. 24 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/north-macedonia-state-lottery-awards-independence-celebrations-contract-to-avalon --- Cite as: North Macedonia State Lottery contract controversy. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/north-macedonia-state-lottery-contract-controversy