Did you know that standard bingo in North America (USA and Canada) is played with 75 balls, whereas the standard bingo game in the UK (and Europe), Australia and New Zealand tends to be played with 90 balls? Thanks to internet bingo both forms of the game (and some newer forms) can be played anywhere but the origins of the two types of game called bingo stretches back to the 16th century. The history of this game, with its origins in lottery games, reveals how the two forms developed in different ways.
To find the origins of bingo as a game we have to go back to early lottery games, one of the earliest on record being the Italian game of 'Lo Giuoco del Lotto' in the early 16th century - this game (a kind of national state run lottery) is still played today and has the familiar lottery format of the players picking numbers which they then hope to be matched by a random draw. Lottery games spread across Europe changing and developing, with lotteries appearing in England by the late 16th century. By the 18th century bingo type games were appearing. The main difference between a lottery and a bingo game is that with a lottery you get to pick your numbers, but with bingo you get a card with pre-printed numbers on it. Also usually bingo is a quickly run game (e.g. more than one game per evening) whereas a lottery may well run over a longer time (e.g. weekly). There is, of course, some considerable overlap between the games.
This leads us into the development of the traditional 90 ball bingo game. By the late 19th Century (i.e. about 1880) the modern 90 ball bingo game (though it was not yet commonly called bingo) had reached Germany and and also began to reach and influence the various lottery and bingo type games played in England as the British Navy travelled and brought back bingo type games. So by 1900 in England a game called lotto, tombola or housey-housey was being played, with the same rules and form as what we now call 90 ball bingo. The name bingo was established by the time of the second world war, but the game was still called housey-housey in military circles (e.g. the Royal Navy as mentioned above).
Meanwhile in the USA the European lottery style games had reached there and been adapted into general lottery style games, and a children's game called lotto in the early 20th century. A version of these games called 'beano' was popular at carnivals from about the 1920s onwards. It was played with beans as card markers (hence beano) and the players called out 'beano!' when they made their pattern or coverall. This carnival game had the characteristics of what is now called 75 ball bingo - 75 or so numbered balls or tokens for the random drawing and the square card for the players.
The modern 75 ball form of bingo was invented (and named as 'Bingo') by Edwin Lowe, a New York toy salesman, in 1929. He was visiting a carnival where the above mentioned 'beano' game was being played and was watching as someone called out 'bingo' instead of beano when they made their pattern or coverall. He then commercialized the game, and sold it as a toy set, and chose the name 'Bingo'. He also licensed the game and its form at reasonable terms, thus contributing to its rapid spread and subsequent popularity.
These days with internet bingo everyone, wherever they are (if they have the internet), has the opportunity to play 75 ball or 90 ball bingo - and even other variants such as 80 ball bingo, games with themes and networked jackpots. Still, the most popular forms of bingo remain those that have their history in 'real world' bingo, with 90 ball popular in the UK and 75 ball popular in the US and so on. Long may traditional bingo continue, of both and all types!
To find the origins of bingo as a game we have to go back to early lottery games, one of the earliest on record being the Italian game of 'Lo Giuoco del Lotto' in the early 16th century - this game (a kind of national state run lottery) is still played today and has the familiar lottery format of the players picking numbers which they then hope to be matched by a random draw. Lottery games spread across Europe changing and developing, with lotteries appearing in England by the late 16th century. By the 18th century bingo type games were appearing. The main difference between a lottery and a bingo game is that with a lottery you get to pick your numbers, but with bingo you get a card with pre-printed numbers on it. Also usually bingo is a quickly run game (e.g. more than one game per evening) whereas a lottery may well run over a longer time (e.g. weekly). There is, of course, some considerable overlap between the games.
This leads us into the development of the traditional 90 ball bingo game. By the late 19th Century (i.e. about 1880) the modern 90 ball bingo game (though it was not yet commonly called bingo) had reached Germany and and also began to reach and influence the various lottery and bingo type games played in England as the British Navy travelled and brought back bingo type games. So by 1900 in England a game called lotto, tombola or housey-housey was being played, with the same rules and form as what we now call 90 ball bingo. The name bingo was established by the time of the second world war, but the game was still called housey-housey in military circles (e.g. the Royal Navy as mentioned above).
Meanwhile in the USA the European lottery style games had reached there and been adapted into general lottery style games, and a children's game called lotto in the early 20th century. A version of these games called 'beano' was popular at carnivals from about the 1920s onwards. It was played with beans as card markers (hence beano) and the players called out 'beano!' when they made their pattern or coverall. This carnival game had the characteristics of what is now called 75 ball bingo - 75 or so numbered balls or tokens for the random drawing and the square card for the players.
The modern 75 ball form of bingo was invented (and named as 'Bingo') by Edwin Lowe, a New York toy salesman, in 1929. He was visiting a carnival where the above mentioned 'beano' game was being played and was watching as someone called out 'bingo' instead of beano when they made their pattern or coverall. He then commercialized the game, and sold it as a toy set, and chose the name 'Bingo'. He also licensed the game and its form at reasonable terms, thus contributing to its rapid spread and subsequent popularity.
These days with internet bingo everyone, wherever they are (if they have the internet), has the opportunity to play 75 ball or 90 ball bingo - and even other variants such as 80 ball bingo, games with themes and networked jackpots. Still, the most popular forms of bingo remain those that have their history in 'real world' bingo, with 90 ball popular in the UK and 75 ball popular in the US and so on. Long may traditional bingo continue, of both and all types!
