History Of Online Bingo

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Online bingo is becoming very popular among millions of players all over the world. Believed to have originated in Italy in mid sixteenth century, the game was called beano. The game then travelled to other parts of Europe in the subsequent centuries starting with France and Germany.

When the game spread to the United States, it was named bingo, with bingo cards becoming increasingly popular in the 1930s. The man behind modern bingo was a travelling salesman named Edwin S. Lowe, who recognised the potential of the game and is responsible for its popularity today. Played very similar to modern bingo, it was a favourite activity at country fairs in the 1930s. Players would cross off numbers on their cards with beans and call out 'beano' when they completed the game.

It is believed that one of the players accidently yelled 'bingo' instead of 'beano', an utterance that was overheard by Lowe. Realising that bingo was catchier than beano; Lowe renamed the game bingo and started his own range of bingo games. By 1934, over ten thousand online bingo games were being played ...
... across the United States every week.

Origins of UK bingo

Although bingo has been an integral part of UK's local history, the modern version played today did not reach here until 1960. Despite the delayed arrival, bingo is more popular in the UK than any other country. Now considered an irreplaceable part of modern UK culture, bingo in UK is very unique. Bingo players in UK have assigned special nicknames for each number and most of these nicknames are derived from rhyming cockney slang. Some nicknames also signify historical events or eras.

The number 59, for example, is also called the 'Brighton line' as the original engine's number running along the London-Brighton line was 59. The number 26 is sometimes called the 'bed and breakfast' as the original price for a similar stay was two shillings and six pence. Bingo was first formalised in 1968 and legalised in the UK by 1986 and since then, its popularity continues to increase.

Online bingo

Bingo gained so much popularity that it soon became an online sensation too. First introduced in 2003, online bingo now sees a membership of over three million players each week. Almost 70% of online bingo players are women and 90% of the total players fall under the age of fifty. It has also been revealed that online bingo is one of the most popular leisure activities among UK's youth, especially women. Currently, bingo generates more than ninety million dollars every week across North America.

About the Author

Tom Silver is an experienced copywriter who has spent over 6 years focusing on a variety of subjects including the online gaming industry which includes online Bingo, bingo bonus, Poker and Casino games.