Bingo

Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

Much has been reported in the papers recently about the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the anti smoking law in England. Conditions have become so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded big tax breaks to help keep the industry afloat. But will the online variation of this traditional game offer a salvation, or will it never compare to its land based equivalent?

Bingo is an ancient game generally played by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game of late had seen a recent comeback in appeal with younger people deciding to hit the bingo parlours instead of the discos on a Friday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the enacting of the cigarette ban around England and Wales.

No more will players be permitted to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 every public place will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most favored places where players like to puff on cigarettes.

The outcome of the anti smoking law can already be looked at in Scotland where smoking is already banned in the bingo halls. Numbers have plunged and the business is absolutely fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Certainly they have not forgotten this age old game?

The answer is online. Gamblers realize that they can enjoy bingo using their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and cig and still enjoy monstrous jackpots. This is a recent development and has happened bordering on perfect with the anti smoking law.

Of course playing on the internet is unlikely to replace the collective aspect of heading down to the bingo hall, but for a group of men and women the governing edicts have left many bingo players with little option.