US Bingo

Bingo is big business in the USA. The bingo variant that Americans love most is 75-ball bingo. It is a much faster game than the traditional 90-ball bingo and it is played with 5 x 5 bingo cards sporting 24 bingo numbers per card. Typically players would purchase several of these cards for their bingo gaming pleasure. The card has the letters B-I-N-G-O across the 5 columns. Each letter contains a range of permissible bingo numbers. Note that there is one ‘free number’ in 75-ball bingo cards. Winning combos are had by completing any preset patterns that online/real life bingo rooms allow for. These can be shapes, Xs, corners, diagonals etcetera.

Winning combinations pay out according to the rules of the bingo room. In the USA bingo is often staged in churches or charity organizations. It must be born in mind that gaming regulations in the USA affects the legality of playing bingo. There are however certain states like New Jersey and Nevada that allow for gambling games. Several states in the US allow bingo halls to be rented out to sponsors. In these types of venues it is common to find bingo games running at regular intervals. While the jackpots may be smaller, they certainly keep the interest in bingo alive and well. A popular US bingo pastime is progressive bingo gaming. In this type of game, players partake in a marathon session of bingo games until the overall winner of such games is crowned.

But all the big money bingo gaming is to be found in Sin City – Las Vegas. That’s where the stakes are plenty high and the jackpots are never shy. The Native Americans also offer bingo games on their reservations however. Regarding bingo gaming times in the US, it is generally fixed sessions that bingo games are available at (there are several notable exceptions). The bingo times run from 9am thru 11 pm. The variety of bingo-style games is impressive. Games include Slingo, Lingo, Bingo America, Bovine Bingo and Buzzword Bingo and many more. While the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) of 2006 prohibits US banks from allowing money transfers to gambling sites, there are still several online bingo rooms accepting US players. These include USA Bingo, Cyber Bingo, Desperate Housewives Bingo, Bingo Hall, Vics Bingo and others. Note that the legality of playing Bingo is not in question – the UIGEA is aimed at US banks – not players. So it’s perfectly legal for players to play bingo online.