It started in Italy, in 1530
Bingo traces back to a game called lotto, played in Italy as far back as 1530 — nearly 500 years ago, and long before Italy existed as a unified country (it didn't unify until 1861, and only became a republic on 2nd June 1946). That early lotto was a national lottery, and it has run almost every week in Italy ever since. Worth noting: the name lotto lives on today as the brand for the UK's National Lottery.
From France to Germany to America
By the 1770s the game had reached France, where it went by "Le Lotto" and was played mainly by wealthy men. It kept spreading. By the 1800s the Germans had picked it up as a children's game — a way to practise counting and basic maths. The game didn't start looking much like modern bingo until it crossed the Atlantic in the early 1900s.
How "beano" became "bingo"
The word "bingo" itself came from "beano." Beano was a carnival game — supposedly introduced by a man who had seen something similar in Germany, tweaked the rules, and ran a stall at fairs and travelling shows. It was a hit. Players covered their numbers with dried beans, which is where the name came from.
The story goes that one winner got so caught up in the moment that they mixed up their words and shouted "bingo!" instead of "beano." The name stuck.
Bingo in the US today
In the US, the game has stayed close to that original carnival format. Cards are 5 columns by 5 rows, numbers run from 1 to 75, and beans gave way to marker pens and bingo daubers a long time ago. Learn more about US Bingo.
Bingo in the UK
The UK version took a different path. British bingo cards have 3 rows and 9 columns, with blank spaces scattered across them — not every cell has a number. A dauber is still used and a caller still reads out the numbers, but the card layout makes it a noticeably different game. Learn more about UK Bingo.
Australia, New Zealand, and Housie
In Australia and New Zealand, the rules follow the UK format exactly. The one difference: they call it Housie rather than Bingo.