Tombola slots

Who runs tombola slots and bingo

Tombola's UK games are run by Tombola (International) Plc. The Gambling Commission's register lists the company under account 38613 with a registered office at 327 Main Street, Gibraltar, while the business itself is headquartered at Tombola House in Sunderland. Its remote bingo and casino licences have both been active since 1 November 2014, and a virtual-event betting licence was added on 17 July 2025.

From a Sunderland start-up to Flutter

Phil Cronin founded tombola in Sunderland in 1999, and the company grew into one of the best-known names in British online bingo while staying in the North East. In January 2022 Flutter Entertainment bought it for £402 million, adding it to a portfolio that also includes Sky Vegas, Paddy Power and Betfair. Tombola kept its own licence and its own Sunderland base after the deal.

Tombola arcade: where the slot-style games live

The register lists tombola arcade as a second trading name, with its own pair of domains. That is where the company groups its arcade-style and slot-type games, separate from the bingo rooms. If you are looking for tombola slots, the arcade section is the place to start.

Lobby contents change, and we don't list specific titles for sites we haven't verified. What you can do is open any game's help or rules screen, which must show how the game works and what it returns. Our guide on how to read a slot's game info screen shows what each line means, including the RTP range where a game has more than one version.

How tombola slots differ from bingo, in numbers

A bingo-first player moving over to slots is switching between two different kinds of maths. In bingo, prizes are fixed or come from a pool, and your chance depends on how many tickets are in the game. In a slot, each spin is settled by a random number generator against a fixed maths model, and the RTP tells you the long-run return regardless of who else is playing.

A worked example shows the speed gap. Ten bingo tickets at 10p is £1 for a game that may take a few minutes. A slot at 10p a spin costs £1 every 10 spins, which at the minimum pace is 25 seconds. Over an hour, that slot could see well over £100 staked even at 10p, so the same budget runs out far faster. Our slot budget guide and low stake slots page cover how to plan for it.

What bingo players often look for in a slot

Players who come to slots from bingo often prefer gentle games with frequent small wins, low minimum stakes and simple features. That points towards low volatility slots and classic layouts rather than high-variance grid games. Eyecon's Fluffy Favourites, a long-standing bingo-site favourite, is a useful benchmark: 95.39% RTP (a 93.29% version also exists), 25 paylines and a 5,000x max win, though it is rated high volatility, which surprises many players.

Tombola's 2025 penalty and what it covered

The register lists one regulatory action. On 21 July 2025 the Commission imposed a £184,500 financial penalty after investigating a key event the company had reported itself. It found three breaches of the social responsibility code: one on direct electronic marketing consent and two paragraphs of the self-exclusion provision. The Commission described the failings as isolated, said they did not affect all of the company's controls, and credited its immediate remedial action and co-operation.

Those two rule areas protect players directly. Marketing consent means you should only receive promotional emails or texts if you have opted in. Self-exclusion rules require an operator to close or block an excluded customer's account and stop marketing to them. The next section explains how to use both protections.

Self-exclusion and marketing controls you can use

• Marketing preferences: switch off emails, texts and push notifications in your account settings at any time.
• Deposit limits: set daily, weekly or monthly caps; UK operators must offer them.
• Time-out: a short break, usually from a day to several weeks.
• Self-exclusion: a longer block of at least six months on that operator.
• GAMSTOP: one registration that blocks every UK-licensed online gambling site.

Slots and bingo both cost money over time. If either stops feeling like entertainment, the National Gambling Helpline is free on 0808 8020 133, 24 hours a day, and our gambling support page lists other services.

UK slot rules on tombola's arcade games

Slot-type games on tombola follow the same national rules as everywhere else: £5 maximum per spin at 25 and over, £2 for 18 to 24-year-olds, no autoplay, no turbo and at least 2.5 seconds per spin. Bonus buys aren't available in Great Britain. Our UK slot rules guide sets out the full list.

How to check tombola's licence yourself

1. Look for the licence details in the footer of tombola.co.uk.
2. Search the Gambling Commission's public register for 38613.
3. Confirm both the bingo and casino activities show as Active.
4. Open the domain names tab and check the address you use is one of the four listed.
5. Read the regulatory actions tab for the July 2025 decision in full.

The same five steps work for any brand; our guide to checking a slot site's licence explains each one.

Compare alternatives to tombola slots

If you are comparing UKGC-licensed slot sites, these three publish clear terms. Coral gives 100 free spins at 10p on selected games when you deposit and bet £10 on slots, with no wagering on the winnings. PlayOJO gives new UK customers (excluding Northern Ireland) 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p with a first deposit of £10, paid in cash with no wagering. Casumo offers a 50% bonus up to £100 on a first deposit of £20 or more, opt-in, wagered 10x within 7 days. All are 18+ and terms apply.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.