Whilst you may be an online Bingo fiend or aficionado, there’s a rich history behind this much-loved game that you may not be aware of. Before online Bingo, the origin of the game can be traced all the way back to 1530 Italy, taking inspiration from a lottery game called “Lo Giuoco del Lotto D’Italia” – occurring as a staple pastime in their daily lives.
From this point, the game began to progress and gain popularity in other areas of the world. Then known as “Le Lotto”, this early version of the game entered France in the late 1770s and was mostly enjoyed by wealthy Frenchmen. Fast forward to the 1800s, and Germany had their turn at creating their own version of the game, utilising it as more of an educational resource than anything else. Although the game had gained a certain level of notoriety in these particular countries, no one imagined that Bingo would expand to where it has today!
By 1929, the game had progressed even further, reaching North America. Here, we got closer to the Bingo that we know today, in both practice and the name. Known as “Beano”, Bingo was considered to be a country fair game that was frequently played at carnivals in Atlanta, Georgia. The dealer would select numbered discs from a small cigar box whilst the players marked off the numbers on their card with beans. Once a line or entire card was covered with beans, they would then shout out “Beano!” – much like the way we play the game today.
The true turning point for Bingo was when it fell into the hands of the New York toy salesman Edwin S. Lowe. Lowe encountered the game at a fair before introducing it to his friends. During one of their Bingo sessions, one of his friends mispronounced the then-named “Beano” winning chant as “Bingo”.
Lowe worked alongside math professor Carl Leffler to develop even more number combinations to implement into the Bingo cards. By 1930, Leffler had generated up to 6,000 Bingo card combinations, with fewer non-repeating number groups and potential conflicts when a single person achieves a full house.
Bingo gained an even wider reach when a Catholic Priest approached Lowe and asked if his newly debuted game could be used as a way to raise funds for the church. With Lowe’s approval, the church got a real taste for all things Bingo. In fact, by 1934, up to 10,000 games of Bingo were being played per week, with church-led games raising an impressive amount of money over the years.
Over 60 years later, the first online Bingo site was launched, aptly named the Bingo Zone. The site was only available to play in America, and presented itself in a very basic style. Despite the basic appearance, this game marked the beginning of a Bingo revolution, paving the way for the flourishing gaming community and range of Bingo options that we know and love today.
So, as you now know, Bingo started from very little but now dominates the online casino gaming scene. You can settle down in the comfort of your own home, fire up your favoured device and enjoy the best of Bingo games with just a couple of clicks. Oh, how far we’ve come!
