LottoMania

A Review of Lottomania in Nigeria

Nigerians are explorative people, who can identify opportunities and use them to transform their lives. They do so in various ways, including playing online lottery games. With the availability of mobile phones, computers, and the internet, people can easily play online lottery games in the comfort of their homes. There are numerous platforms where people can play lottery games. Individuals feel that it is worth their time and money because of the massive rewards in terms of cash, from the jackpots available. The prizes to be won are more than millions, meaning that upon winning, you are likely to have transformed your life for good. 

One of the most popular online lottery sites is LottoMania Nigeria Limited (LNL). LottoMania Nigeria Limited (LNL) is a company incorporated to carry out the business of lotteries and related gaming activities to transform the daily lives of Nigerians. Therefore, the site majorly targets the Nigerian population, in an effort to add more excitement to willing citizens willing to play and win. 

The Legal Status of LottoMania

LottoMania Nigeria Limited is licensed by the Federal Government of Nigeria in accordance with the Lottery Act of 2005 to conduct and promote lotteries nationally throughout Nigeria. Their Legal and physical address is given as No. 10 Hombori Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja FCT, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The government ensures that lottery games within the country do not involve fraudulent activities to fleece money from innocent Nigerians trying to win big prizes. It is however important to note that the eligibility to play the online lottery is determined by a person’s age, therefore, you must be at least 18 years with an ID, to ascertain the requirements needed to play. 

How to Join LottoMania 

You can join LottoMania using 2 ways- through their website or through SMS way. Since many people have access to the internet and also have mobile phones, it is easier to explore the online option rather than the SMS option. The online option keeps you in much more control over the game because you select the numbers yourself and can easily change them whenever you wish. The following procedure will guide you on how to create your online account with LottoMania: 

• On the site’s home page, click on the “Play Online” option.
• You will be directed to a new page where you will have to fill in your details.
• Enter your first and last name on the form.
• Enter a valid email.
• Enter a password you can easily memorize. The password should meet the site’s requirements. 
• Confirm the password.
• Enter your country’s name.
• Enter our mobile phone number. This is important because you will use it to obtain notifications from the company, as well as when playing using the SMS option. 
• Enter your date of birth.
• Enter the referral code sent to you via SMS. 
• Agree to the terms and conditions and click on “Register”. 

LottoMania Lotteries available

Now that you know the procedure to use when registering, let us explore the lottery games available, and how to play them. The site is one of the most popular online lotto entities where Nigerians can play and win prizes of up to millions of Naira. Nonetheless, the site has two lotteries at the moment, including the “Daily Hammer” and “Game 590”. 

The Daily Hammer

“Daily HAMMER” is a daily lottery game available to all MTN users via “SMS” and “USSD”. The game is however not limited to MTN users alone, because, on the site, you can play online, especially for players without MTN accounts. The current jackpot prize money is NGN5,000,000, however, you can win other prizes depending on matches and allocations. 

How to play the Daily Hammer using the SMS option 

• To play this lottery game, you need to DIAL *873*1# or send “IN” to 873 by SMS. 
• This allows you to receive an SMS with six (6) lucky numbers randomly selected and they will be valid for a same-day draw. The intent is to select six out of the available 80 lucky numbers to win big prizes, should the numbers you chose coincide with the ones on the final draw. 
• Remember, the Daily Hammer is only played using the SMS or USSD, however, you can explore the other game by playing it online. 

How to play using the USSD 

• On your mobile phone, dial *873#.
• A menu will appear on your phone where you will select an option of your choice. The options include Subscribe, Enter Lucky Numbers, Quick Pick, Prize Structure, Customize Entry, Draw/Ticket Status, Payment Option, Unsubscribe, Next, and Main Menu. 
• The Subscribe option prompts you to opt into the game and start playing.
• The “Enter Lucky Numbers” option prompts you to choose six numbers of your choice, separated by a comma. Remember, the numbers should range between 1 and 80, in The Daily Hammer lottery. 
• Under the “Quick Pick” option, the system generates the random six numbers for you. 
• Under the “Prize Structure” option, you familiarize yourself with the prizes you will win after the draw has been done. 
• Under the “Customize Entry” option, you can edit the numbers that are already submitted, especially when you feel that you are not satisfied with your selection. 
• Under the “Draw/Ticket Status”, you identify whether the draw took place or whether you won any prizes. 
• The “Payment Option” selection helps you identify the payment option of your choice. 
• You can also unsubscribe from the service by choosing the “Unsubscribe” option. 
• The “Next” option takes you to the next page of the menu for more selections, whereas the “Main Menu” option takes you back o the main menu. 

You can buy additional tickets by sending “play” followed by your six chosen numbers separated by a comma or sending “QP” to 873 or dialing *873#. The more you send messages to 873 the more chances you have. The cost is NGN 100 per SMS. Sending the SMS automatically draws you into the game to start playing. You can also alter your selections for free up to three times, until then, you will incur costs to change your selections. Furthermore, selection changes can only be done days before the final draw. You can check the details about the final draw by looking at the website or using the USSD code. 

The prize table for the Daily Hammer

The table shows that you are not limited to matching all six numbers because prizes begin with six matches. The amount of money you win is dependent on how much money you wager, and how many matches you obtain. You can wager amounts ranging from NGN10, NGN50, and NGN100.

In addition, you may opt to pick less than six numbers, and the game also has prizes for players picking less than six numbers, as shown in the table below:

Payment options

You can either use your mobile money account, preferably MTN, to deposit money into your account and wager.

When using SMS, you will be deducted N100 worth of airtime to put you into the draw.

To withdraw money, simply walk into the nearest Zenith Bank. Present your ticket and you would be paid in cash. Also, your winnings can be paid into your bank account or mobile money wallet.

To register your bank account/mobile money wallet, dial *873# and select the ‘Payments’ option. Thereafter, follow the prompts.

The payment of prizes

• Winnings are to be claimed not later than 14 days after the draw. If the notified winner refuses the prize or fails to appear to collect, within the stated period the prize remains the property of the Organizer of the Game.
• The organizer will pay prizes equal to 200 NGN by crediting the mobile number with airtime.
• Prizes between 5,000NGN and 20,000 NGN will be paid through Zenith Bank PLC branches nationwide or through bank transfer, mobile money, or any other applicable method. Winners who choose to be paid by bank transfers or money transfer operators will have to bear the cost (charge of the transfer fee) or tax imposed on the prizes.
• 5,000,000 NGN Winners MUST go to the head office to redeem their prizes. The following procedure applies:
• Payment is to take place between 9 a.m. and 5p.m (excluding Sundays)
• Winner’srs claim form must be duly filled
• The phone number used to play must be presented. SMS notifications are generated (the ticket) by the Organizer and the SMS winning notification must be verified before payment
• Picture of the winner and their cheque would be taken
• Photocopy of the winner’s ID must be presented
• The winner(s) will be solely responsible for payment of any direct or indirect payment tax resulting from the payment of the prizes, by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
• Prizes are not transferable.
• Where there are multiple winners for each tier, each winner will win the appropriate cash prize for that selection. For example, the cash prize of 5 numbers is NGN 20,000 (twenty thousand) Naira. If 3 customers successfully choose 5 numbers in the Daily Hammer draw, they will EACH win NGN 20,000 (twenty thousand) Naira.
• Numbers (MSISDN) who are blacklisted, for whatever reason, by their operator will be excluded from the prizes.

Prize Structure is the following:

Correct Numbers - Prize

• 6 Winning Numbers - N 5,000,000
• 5 Winning Numbers - N 20,000
• 4 Winning Numbers - N 5,000
• 3 Winning Numbers - N 2,000

After successfully submitting your numbers, you would receive an SMS. This SMS (or ticket) would contain your played numbers, ticket ID, and draw ID. Do not delete this SMS as you would need this SMS to claim your prize.

Game 5/90

The most popular lottery game in West Africa is the 5/90 fixed odds lotto game because the winning amount is predetermined before a stake is placed. The winning amount depends on the ability of the customer to wager large sums or the operator to put a limit on the highest wager allowed. The player has the freedom to choose a number(s) (DIRECT / NAP Maximum 5) or a combination (PERM short for Permutation) of numbers anywhere from 1 to 90 (maximum 24). Five numbers are randomly drawn. These five numbers are referred to as the “winning numbers”.

How to play online

• If you choose to play online, log in to your account and select the “Daily Hammer” option.
• Select “play Online on the Home page. 
• You will be directed to a page where you can select the numbers of your choice. 
• Ensure that you have deposited money into your account using the right payment options and place your bet. 
• You can play as many times as you wish, to increase your chances of winning. 

How to play Game 5/90

There are different approaches to playing this lottery game, and the options include DIRECT/NAP, MACHINE NUMBERS/MN, PERMUTATIONS/PERM, and the DOUBLE CHANCE/DC. Remember, the tickets are valid for fourteen days upon purchase. 

DIRECT/NAP 

The various approaches to this option include: 

• 1-DIRECT: The Player places a stake in favor of one (1) number from 1 to 90.
• 2–DIRECT: The player stakes in favor of two (2) numbers from 1 to 90.
• 3-DIRECT: The player stakes in favor of three (3) numbers from 1 to 90.
• 4–DIRECT: The player stakes in favor of four (4) numbers from 1 to 90.
• 5-DIRECT: The player stakes in favor of five (5) numbers from 1 to 90.

MACHINE NUMBERS/MN

Under the MACHINE NUMBERS/MN option, the player places a stake in favor of one, two, three, four, or five number(s) from 1 to 90 against the Last five numbers called MACHINE NUMBERS. He or she can play DIRECT or PERM.

PERMUTATIONS/PERM

You can also explore the permutations option, which includes PERM 2, PERM 3, PERM 4, and PERM 5. 

• PERM 2: player places a stake in favor of any two (2) numbers from a selected range of numbers from 1 to 90.
• PERM 3: player places a stake in favor of any three (3) numbers from a selected range of numbers from 1 to 90.
• PERM 4: player places a stake in favor of any four (4) numbers from a selected range of numbers from 1 to 90.
• PERM 5: player places a stake in favor of any five (5) numbers from a selected range of numbers from 1 to 90.

DOUBLE CHANCE/DC

Under this option, the player places a stake in favor of any two (2) numbers against the FIRST 5 Numbers (ORIGINAL) or LAST 5 Numbers (MACHINE NO) from a selected range of numbers from 1 to 90.

The prize table for game 5/90 

Mobile apps

LottoMania Nigeria Limited (LNL) currently does not have an app, however, players can enjoy quality services from the website by using their mobile smartphones or computer browsers. In addition, the company has asserted that an app for android users is being developed and will be availed to customers soon.