Bingo Sites that accept players from Ireland

History of Bingo in Ireland

Aside from fertile gambling soils that kept nourishing a nation of inveterate ancient players, several historical events set the stage for the broad adoption of bingo in the second half of the 20^th century.

Firstly, a plodding yet steady establishment of horse racing as a sport in the 16th century came as a logical extension of the predominantly agricultural population’s affinity for such a discipline and pastime.

Secondly,the institution of English and, latterly, British rule in Ireland resulted in not a single attempt to regulate the local gambling market.

Thirdly, following the War of Independence in 1922 that established the Irish Free State, the newly formed government promptly instituted the 1926 Betting Act (revised in 1931) to regulate the growing industry.

And fourthly, looking to further adjust the license-only market environment for operators to offer their services to an increasing number of players, in 1956, the legislators introduced the Gaming and Lotteries Act.

This significant regulation legalized lotteries — present in the country since the Great Depression in the 1930s, established to help fund the building of medical facilities, known as the Irish Hospital Sweepstakes — allowing charity organizations to run the contests exclusively, and additionally banned brick-and-mortar casinos to operate in the country.

Thus…

When, in 1960, the Catholic Church introduced bingo, the market conditions were ripe.

The game was already one of the most popular, widely adopted pastimes in the United States, supported by extensive bingo sets and paraphernalia production. Across the pond, in the UK, almost fifteen million residents were regular members of national bingo clubs at the time.

Compounded with gamble-loving Irish tradition, a flow of bingo halls swept the country. The game offered not only a chance to win some money perhaps but also an opportunity to socialize, have a beer, chat, and enjoy a great night out.

The age of the internet mushroomed interactive bingo rooms and established yet another layer in the history of the game that, meanwhile, became exceedingly popular among residents.

As the interactive environment established new channels for Irish to access their favorite pastime, the ensuing demand delivered a plethora of online bingo operators, which, in turn, enabled players to enjoy highly diversified offerings. 

And just like that…

Grounded in deep gambling roots, propelled by savvy players, and surrounded by a well-regulated land-based ecosystem, this relatively young game became a fixture of the local folklore.

Bingo In Contemporary Ireland

Contrary to a general trend in neighboring Britain and around the world, the land-based bingo market in the Emerald Isle never faced damaging challenges of declining popularity. To this day, traditional venues remain as highly popular as they were back in the 1960s.

Still…

Present-day bingo halls did introduce a couple of changes throughout time.

In an effort to entice different demographics to join in and play, the gaming scene became more hipster compared to other markets. Numerous clubs cater to the LGBT communities, offering custom-made night events, and some of the venues have been running for more than twenty years.

With the emergence of a smoking ban inside public places, halls got quite creative to gear themselves up for a new challenge.

Thus, drive-in bingo venues became quite popular.

Players would park their vehicles, turn off engines, and buy a bingo book. In case of a win, patrons would beep their horn, and a hostess would come to cash them out — through the car window. These places are so well-accepted that it is not uncommon to witness people taking day trips to play in nearby county clubs.

Other venues opted for modern architectural solutions and colorful vibes to attract younger visitors.

As tea, coffee, and homemade cakes often comes with the territory — including omnipresent electronic bingo devices, birthday giveaways, and various loyalty packages — one particular operator opted to use a repurposed building to refurbish it into a massive 650-seat venue in 2014.

So…

While modern brick-and-mortar bingo operators invest heavily to remain relevant and entice a new generation of players, they also have to keep pace with the regulatory amendments.

For instance, in 2019, a new law lowered the prizes for players from 75-85 percent to 50 percent. Yet again, despite such a significant development, venues’ attendance remained almost intact.

To put all those developments in analytical perspective…

According to H2 Gambling Capital, Ireland’s 2019 gross bingo turnover in Ireland equaled €132 million, amounting to close to four percent of the national gross gambling turnover.

Covid-shaped 2020 provided for a steep decline, with turnover estimated to €58.2 million.

However, 2021 seems to be on track to yield €98.8 million, while 2022 projections forecast bingo turnover to rebound at €133.8 million fully.

This, in turn, offers probably the best indication of the overall popularity of 90-ball bingo — the most prevalent variant — in the land-based halls across Ireland and among its players.

State of Online Bingo in Ireland

Considering such abundant national inclination toward this game, its digital counterpart is indeed a crowded realm.

As an increasing number of patrons opt to play from their homes — or by using mobile devices — the demand puts online operators in a position to battle to acquire new visitors.

Pretty much everything is on the table to entice new punters: Well-designed user interfaces, variety of games (including 75-ball, progressive jackpots, and 30-ball variants), enthusiastic online interactions, new software releases, entertaining cross-gaming experiences, and last but not least, highly innovative promotions.

The range of offerings…

…is wide and deep that it often creates a unique but sweet challenge for well-educated Irish online players: Sometimes, it takes a significant amount of time to evaluate each offering and pick up the favorable operator correctly.

This is yet another reason to deliberately and relentlessly sift through our database here.

Aside from all the relevant information you may require, we also emphasize venues from reputable online jurisdictions, online destinations that certify RNGs, and interactive bingo rooms that strive to differentiate themselves from rogue operators.

To accentuate the importance of proper choice…

The iGaming market in Ireland is somewhat unique in the sense that it became fully regulated only in 2015, upon the implementation of the Gambling Act that liberalized online gambling.

As such a youngster, the country still has to establish an independent regulator to govern the market on an industry level and handle all relevant issues such as age restrictions, gambling limits, cooling off timeframes, and advertising policies.

Although 2019 amendments to the Gaming and Lotteries Act of 1956 govern online bingo, day-to-day regulative operations are still the purview of the Central Bank of Ireland, instead of a single-point-of-reference organization.

Furthermore, as more and more offshore operators target local punters, it is essential to mention that all contracts (in terms of business interactions) between the operators and local players are not governed by Irish law.

Such a situation…

…only mandates an additional level of prudence and responsibility that online players in Ireland have to navigate as they select the most appropriate interactive bingo venue.

Then again, Irish players seem to be well-experienced, which, at least in theory, should make them well-educated online customers.

The Future of Bingo in Ireland

Regardless of differences in development levels between land-based and interactive scenes — particularly in terms of legislation and density of local offerings — there seems to be no dull moment in the Irish bingo market.

Efforts of land-based operators to attract Millennials and Z-Generation players have expanded in recent years into several non-traditional bingo areas.

Halls, by default, offer vegan food and cocktails. The standard game calls are substituted with funny stories or long-winded announcements (envision the Brazilian TV commentator’s reaction to a soccer goal) and numerous social media references.

As bingo halls increasingly work to attract student crowds into local venues, traditionalists are going the extra mile, to say the least, to reinvigorate the good old ways.

Indeed…

When it comes to this pastime, it seems that Irish people have mastered how to combine an entertaining experience with a pure-luck game without neglecting the responsibility and common prudence to make well-informed calls.

In doing so, they probably addressed the essence of gambling: Great fun. We wish you the very same, in addition to plain good luck!