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Gamblers often disparagingly call Bingo a ’senior citizens game.’ This attitude, however, is absolutely unjustified since Bingo, a game with a history of several hundred years, enjoys wide popularity worldwide and is appreciated not just by fans of family board games but also by true casino experts. Rules of Bingo, especially those of the so-called ’British Bingo,’ or ’90 Ball Bingo,’ are extremely simple, and even a beginner can master this game easily.
History
Oddly enough, the history of Bingo is traced to the… tradition of elections. In the beginning of the 16th century, in Genoa, Italy, members of the City Council were elected by drawing special balls with numbers on them: securing a seat in the Genoa supreme governing board was purely a matter of luck.
Commercial application for this election method was found quite quickly, and as early as the middle of the 16th century a game called ‘Lo Giuoco del Lotto D’Italia’ – hence the name of the game known as ‘lotto’ – emerged in Italy, becoming the predecessor of Bingo. As it often happens, other countries picked up a good idea quickly, and just in two and a half centuries it became one of the most popular gambling games in Europe. It is of interest that in the 19th century, in Germany, Bingo was used not just for entertaiment, but also for educational purposes: as a teaching tool for helping children to learn the alphabet and multiplication table.
For a long time Bingo was considered mainly a family pastime and was rarely played for real money. A person who monetized the game was – unsurprisingly – American, a shrewd businessman by the name of Edwin S. Lowe. In the 1930s during the Great Depression his company that sold toys went bankrupt. Desperately looking for new ways to make money, Edwin S. Lowe ended up a millionaire.
Mr. Lowe made his first million practically out of nothing: one day he happened to see a group of Italians playing a simple but engaging game, where they were marking the numbers drawn on the cardboard sheets. The players were covering the numbers with beans, and the winner would shout out, ’Bean go.’ Incidentally this phrase called out by the lucky player attracted Lowe’s attention. As a result, this distinct gambling game was introduced to the nation. The American entrepreneur figured out the rules of the traditional Italian game, adjusted it to the preferences of the finicky Americans and began popularizing it in New York.
Since 1930s the popularity of Bingo as we know it today has been rapidly growing. Edwin S. Lowe was fortunate: although he was trying to turn Bingo into a gambling game, for a long time it was considered a variety of lottery and unlike other games was never banned. Ironically, Mr. Lowe did not secure the official title as the inventor of Bingo. After all, he was not the only one, who grasped how profitable this game could be: In 1933 one Hugh J. Ward copyrighted the word ‘bingo’ and published the first book on the rules of Bingo.
General principles
The game of bingo can be played anywhere. First of all, one can do it at home, in the company of friends or with one’s family. The rules are quite simple, and the game itself is quite engaging, so this sort of entertainment may bring fun to all the players. Secondly, America has a tradition of playing Bingo in specially designated places, Bingo parlors. Usually game sessions are conducted by churches or charity organizations withholding a percentage of the total profit derived from the session for fund-raising purposes. Thirdly, Bingo can be played online, and this is the most popular way of playing this game today. In many Internet casinos Bingo is on the very top of the most popular games.
The concept of the game is more than simple. Before the game starts, all players receive a card with a set of random numbers in a grid where they mark the numbers drawn. The main role in Bingo is played by the caller or, if the game is played in a casino, the dealer. The caller draws the balls from the roller cage and announces the numbers on them. The player’s task is to find the number announced on their card and mark it. The game ends when a player completes the task and achieves a specified pattern from the numbers drawn (in some cases all of the numbers on the card must be marked to win the game). The winner receives a prize or – if the game is played at a casino – a sum of money.
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Rules
Although the basic concept of Bingo is always the same, some rules may differ depending on the type of the game. The two most common varieties of Bingo in online casinos are British Bingo and American Bingo. They differ both in terms of the number of balls used in the game and by the tasks that the players have to complete.
Rules of British Bingo
British Bingo, also known as ’90 Ball Bingo’ (the number of balls used in the game), has the concept and rules similar to those of the Soviet Lotto game. Before the game begins, all players receive rectangular shaped cards with 27 spaces arranged by 3 rows. Each row has 5 random numbers ranging from 1 to 90. The British Bingo game has 3 phases, or rounds:
- The first round is won by a player that covers one of the three rows;
- The second round is won by a player that covers two of the three rows; and
- The final round is won by a player that covers all three rows on the card.
The amount of the money prize is determined by the results shown in each of the three rounds. The first round winner usually receives 15% of the total prize money, while the second round winner and the game winner receive 30% and 55%, respectively. When two players complete their tasks simultaneously, the prize money is equally divided between both winners. British Bingo is particularly popular in online casinos since its rules are more simple and easier to understand than those of American Bingo.
Rules of American Bingo
Compared to British Bingo, American Bingo is more original, yet much more complicated. This variety of the game has its own set of rules. First of all, cards in American Bingo differ from those used in British Bingo and are divided into 25 spaces: 5 rows and 5 columns. Except for the center space, each space contains a random number written in it. Moreover, each of the five columns is labeled with a letter from the word B-I-N-G-O: B on the top of the first column, I on the top of the second one, etc. The player’s task is not just to cover one row or the whole card, but rather to achieve a specified pattern from the numbers drawn. Required patterns may significantly vary depending on the rules of the house.
