Known by various names throughout history, such as Lo Giuoco del
Lotto D’Italia and Le Lotto, the name bingo is rumoured to have come
into existence following a mispronunciation by an American player.
Having reached North American by the 19th century, the game became
known as “beano” until Edwin S. Lowe called “bingo” during a game.
The name stuck and from then on a standardised version of the game
became known as bingo across the world.
Bingo now exists in two main forms:
British (European) and North American. Both games play out almost
identically, except for the fact that the British version has 90
balls, while the American has 75. Over time the game continued to
grow in popularity but in the late eighties and early nineties the
industry fell into decline.
However, the game enjoyed a revival
thanks to the growth of online bingo. Opening up the game to a huge
number of people, bingo is now played by millions of people across
the world. Indeed, the online industry alone was worth $1.6 billion
in 2009 and that figure has continued to increase as bingo sites
find new and engaging ways for people to enjoy the game.
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