It is difficult to find a person who has never heard of bingo. This game is growing in popularity and gaining more and more favour with the players all over the world. The rules are simple: players have to match the randomly drawn numbers with what they have on their cards until they cover a specific pattern.
Through the history, bingo has been evolving, changing and acquiring new forms. Let’s take a look on how it all happened.
Origins of Bingo
Most probably, earliest bingo ancestor is the Italian lottery called “Lo Giuoco del Lotto d'Italia”. It dates back to the 16th century and has been preserving its significant place up to the current days. The national lottery in Italy contributes over 75 million dollars to the government budget annually.
During 18th and 19th centuries the game spread through Europe and overseas. In France “Le Lotto” was played predominantly by the nobility. In Germany games with the similar principle were used to teach children spelling or maths.
Modern Bingo
Bingo, as we know it today, was popularized by a toy salesman Edwin S. Lowe. He accidentally came across the game site at a carnival in Florida. Lowe immediately saw bright prospects, so he hired mathematician Carl Leffler to develop six thousand unique cards, and then Lowe organized several large games which brought him a success. Bingo saw a massive rise and made its way to casinos, churches and people’s homes.
Age of the Internet
As computers and the Internet entered our lives, an increasing number of people choose to play bingo online. Great Britain is the motherland of the very first free online bingo game – Bingo Zone founded in 1996. But it was not until the early 2000s when large online casinos started to open attracting millions of people. There are different variations of bingo starting with traditional versions up to the most unusual ones:
30/75/80/90-Ball Bingo
Coverall Bingo
Bingo Bonanza
Horse Racing Bingo
Death Bingo
And many others
Predictions for the Future
Innovative technologies in the field of entertainment continue to surprise us literary every day. It is possible that soon the world will see a new platform for enjoying bingo. What can be said for sure – the game is not going to fade. Statistics show that recently there has been a steady growth in a number of gamblers in total and those who play bingo online in particular. At that, a women to men ratio gradually becomes more balanced so we can expect that in the future players will be represented equally in terms of gender. The same goes for different age groups – advertisement, fascinating websites and mobile apps do their job in attracting a younger audience.
It is no wonder that bingo has such a long history and perhaps even greater future: this game is easily accessible, has simple rules and offers a lot of fun.
