How to play 90 Ball Bingo

Who hasn’t heard of bingo? Bingo 90 ball games are some of the most popular you’ll see played across halls and online. As you might expect, it’s a game that involves 90 different numbers to spot and mark off – but there’s actually a little more to it than you might imagine!

In this guide, we’ll take you through how to play 90 Ball Bingo, where it first started, and suggest some popular strategies that seasoned ball spotters are known to use when dabbing away.

Not sure what we mean by dabbing? All will be revealed.

What is 90 Ball Bingo?

90 Ball Bingo is a variation of the popular bingo game where you get a list of numbers on a card and have to mark or dab off any that your bingo caller reveals.

The aim of the game is to mark off numbers on your bingo sheet that line up in a specific way. For example, you can claim ‘lines’ by marking off numbers in a row or column, or a ‘full house’ by marking off all your numbers.

During the game, a caller will draw random numbered balls out of the 90. Each player has a random layout of numbers on their cards, meaning that some will claim lines and full houses before others.

As a 90 Ball Bingo player, your goal is to mark off as many numbers as you can when they’re announced, and to look carefully at your card – otherwise, other players might beat you to the punch!

Thankfully, online and live versions of 90 Ball Bingo played on mobile and desktop usually dab and call wins for you.

Another thing you might know about 90 Ball Bingo is that each ball has a special name or joke attached. ‘Two little ducks’, for example, is the number 22 – because the number looks like two ducks from a certain angle!

The history of the 90 ball game is longer and more varied than you might think, so let’s pause for a quick history lesson.

History of 90 Ball Bingo

Believe it or not, 90 Ball Bingo is technically the British version of the game.

In the US, bingo is played with only 75 balls. 90 Ball Bingo also has different kinds of tickets and cards, and follows a slightly different way of calling.

The game has been around for longer than many people imagine. It is believed that bingo originated in Italy in around the 16th century, as a form of national lottery known as ‘Lo Giuoco Lotto d’Italia’.

Even stranger is the fact that the game has supposedly not changed too much since then! Just like now, players had cards with rows on them, and numbers were called out to mark off.

However, it wasn’t until the 1770s that this popular game made it to other countries, most notably France, which welcomed it happily. From here, French bingo players designed standard cards with three rows and nine vertical lines.

Bingo eventually came to Britain in the 1800s – and from here, we developed that infamous ‘bingo lingo’. Bingo lingo refers to bingo calls! So, when you hear calls such as ‘duck and dive’ for the number 25, you’ll know that it’s a British invention.

In many cases, the British bingo lingo is based on Cockney rhyming slang – and thankfully, the tradition hasn’t changed much over the decades, even after we all started playing 90 ball games online.

How to win in 90 Ball Bingo

One of the best things about 90 Ball Bingo is that in every round there can be up to three different winners.

To win at 90 Ball Bingo, you can get a one-line (where all of the numbers on any single row are called out), a two-line (where all of the numbers on two rows of the ticket are called out), or a full house (where all three lines are completed, and you’ve marked off all the numbers on your card).

In a live setting, you typically call out “Bingo” if you win a line or two lines, and “House” if you mark off all your numbers. In online bingo, games take care of this for you.

A round of bingo only ends when all three winners have been found. But what are some of the best strategies you can use to make the most of your tickets?

Generally, avid bingo players will tell you to play at times when there usually aren’t many other people logging in! The fewer players there are, the less likely a bingo card will be called out quickly. This is because there will be less competition and, therefore, potentially more chances for you to win.

That said, this means that you’ll usually play for smaller prizes. The prize pots available in online bingo rooms typically grow from the bets that people place. Therefore, there’s likely to be bigger prizes if you’re playing in a room of 50, rather than a room of five. Remember, though, that 90 Ball Bingo is a game of chance.

Another thing that avid bingo players do is purchase multiple cards. The more cards you have, the more chances you have of having a winning line – hypothetically! Again, it’s all a game of chance, and you should always play bingo responsibly.

Buying and playing with several cards at once isn’t always recommended. After all, there’s no guarantee that your extra cards will come out as winners!

Take it from us – the best course of action to take is to simply keep a close eye on your bankroll and only purchase what you can afford. Set an upper limit for your bingo games – and if you meet it, cash out and walk away.

Of course, it also makes sense to get accustomed to the basic rules of the game!

What are the rules of 90 Ball Bingo?

In 90 Ball Bingo, players buy numbered tickets either directly in the bingo hall if it is a live session or from a bingo room if they’re playing at a casino – such as LeoVegas, for example.

As mentioned above, each ticket has a three-by-nine chart, with each row holding five numbers and four empty boxes. As the game’s name suggests, the numbers on the cards go from 1 to 90. When a number that appears on a player’s card is called out, the player must mark that number. If you’re playing online, your numbers are usually marked off by default.

The goal is to reach at least one whole line full of called-out numbers. Two lines are even better, and three are the best – that’s when you get a full house.

The caller displays or calls out the numbers one at a time as they come out. A number can only be called out once during each round of the game.

Traditional 90 Ball Bingo games tend to last anywhere between five and 10 minutes on average, but when playing online, you’ll likely find that there are a few variations on this. Ultimately, each round lasts until someone claims a full house or a complete card.

Remember, these are only the general rules of the game – always make sure to check out the individual terms and rules of any 90 Ball Bingo games you play before you pay in any real money!

Variations of 90 Ball Bingo

As you might imagine, the rise of online bingo has led to lots of different variations on 90 Ball Bingo popping up over the years. At LeoVegas, we absolutely take advantage of the different styles and twists on the game!

For example, in our Jackpot Room, there’s a progressive jackpot prize up for grabs if someone calls “House” in fewer than 37 calls. If no one gets it in one round, the jackpot rolls over to the next, and keeps rolling over until someone claims the prize.

We also offer Heavy Weight Bingo, a variation where the prizes are higher and there’s a larger jackpot to play for. You can scale up even higher from there, with the Super Heavy Weight Room.

If you play bingo online, you’ll likely come across lots of different themed rooms and games but based on the 90 Ball classic. You’ll also likely see 75 ball games, which have fewer numbers but just as many quirks and twists as the variations discussed here.

90 Ball Bingo is something of a British staple. Whether at the seaside or out in the country, you’re always likely to spot people dabbing away at their cards.

The online bingo revolution of the early 2000s also led to more and more people discovering the game from home! LeoVegas will always have a place for bingo – 90 ball or otherwise – so dive in and take a look at what’s on offer from our bingo collection today.