How to play bingo

• There are many online bingo halls that can be found on the internet, all offering many different varieties of bingo. However, bingo has been around for many years and even though the web has brought the game to millions more people, the basis of the game has remained the same.

  Bingo has always has the stigma of being a game for older people sitting in Church halls on a Sunday evening playing for small prizes. This could not be further from the truth as online bingo has grown the game into one of the most popular ways for young people to gamble.

  In order to play online bingo, players need to first buy their bingo cards. These cards have 25 squares on them in a 5 X 5 grid. At the top of each row there is a letter which spells out B-I-N-G-O. Each letter corresponds with a number according to the value of the number. The lower numbers will appear in the “B” column with the higher numbers appearing in the “O” column as these numbers are in ascending order.

  The actual numbers depend on what version of bingo the online casino is offering. American bingo is played with 75 numbers and British bingo uses 90 numbers. American bingo, for example works as follows: B column has numbers 1 – 15; I column has numbers 16 - 30; N column has numbers 31 – 45; G column has numbers 46 – 60 and O column has numbers 61 – 75.

  The aim of the game is to cross off numbers on the card as the numbers are called with the point being to complete a certain pattern on the card. This could be a full card, a horizontal line or a specific shape. The first person to complete the pattern is declared the window.

  Although there are 25 spaces on the bingo card, there are only 24 numbers. The reason for this is the fact that the middle number is a free space that can automatically be crossed off on the card.

  There are never two cards in bingo that will be the same and this keeps the chances of multiple winners to a minimum. Up to 9,000 unduplicated cards can be in play in a single game.

  The numbers are drawn by the caller and it is up to the gambler to cross these numbers off themselves. Some online bingo halls allow players to play multiple cards and this can become quite confusing – therefore many have introduced automated cards which automatically cross off the numbers that have been called. This may take a bit of the fun out of the game, but at least there is no chance of having a winning card going to waste.

  In the event that there are two cards that are declared winners, the prize pot will be split between the two players. Prizes in online bingo can be quite substantial with the biggest payouts occurring at online bingo halls that also offer progressive jackpots.