Will the Cigarette Ban in Britain Force Bingo Players Online?
Posted in Bingo on 02/09/2026 12:25 am by Eileen
An abundance has been reported in the press just a while ago concerning the bingo industry singing the blues because of the anti smoking law in the United Kingdom. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive tax cuts to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. But can the online adaptation of this traditional game offer a reprieve, or will it in no way compare to its bricks and mortar kin?
Bingo is an established game normally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game of late had undergone a recent return in popularity with younger people deciding to go to the bingo halls instead of the clubs on a Saturday night. This is all about to be destroyed with the introduction of the smoking ban throughout United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be able to smoke whilst marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of 2007 every public area will no longer be allowed to permit smoking in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most popular places where folks like to puff on cigarettes.
The results of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo parlours. Numbers have plunged and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Surely they haven’t abandoned this established game?
The answer is on the internet. People realize that they can gamble on bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a drink and cigarette and still enjoy big cash rewards. This is a recent development and has happened just about perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course playing online is unlikely to replace the social aspect of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of players the rules have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with no alternative.