Introduction
Your idea of what a classic game of Bingo looks like may vary quite wildly depending on whether you’re from the UK or the US. These games are all called Bingo, but they can look very different in terms of their basic format, card layout, rules and gameplay.
Now that more players than ever are trying out online Bingo games like Clover Rollover, it’s a good idea to know what it is that sets the major Bingo varieties apart. So, follow us as we break down the key differences between 75-ball and 90-ball, two of the most common Bingo formats.
75-ball Bingo
The most popular Bingo format in the US is known as 75-ball, since it only uses 75 numbers in its gameplay. This generally makes for a slightly faster pace of gameplay compared to the UK format, as there is a slightly smaller pool of potential numbers to draw from.
The other major defining feature of 75-ball Bingo is the format of its Bingo card. Most people will recognise the iconic 5×5 Bingo grid, with its 24 numbered squares and free centre space. Plenty of other formats or variations draw on the 5×5 card as inspiration.
Each column on the card is labelled with one of the letters that spell out Bingo, with only a specific range of numbers generally found in each column. But that doesn’t stop there being a massive number of potential layouts for this card – more than 552 septillion!
The obvious goal of a game of 75-ball Bingo is to get the full house – marking off every number on the card – but it isn’t the only way to win. In some games the goal will be the mark off a set pattern instead, from straight lines to all four corners or complex shapes, such as symbols and letters.
90-ball Bingo
Players in the UK will be more familiar with the 90-ball format, which is also the dominant variety in countries like Australia. This is typically a slower-paced variety, given the high number count in play.
The 90-ball Bingo card looks significantly different compared to its cousin, with each ticket featuring a 3×9 grid. Each of the three rows contains a mix of five numbers and four blank spaces, for a total of 15 printed numbers per card. This creates a pretty different play dynamic compared to the almost fully-filled card found in US games.
A typical game of 90-ball Bingo is played in three distinct stages, for when a player is the first to successfully mark off a single line, two lines and then the full house. This splits up play and allows for multiple players to have a winning combination, depending on who is the first to fill out each part of their card.
Another hallmark of the 90-ball format is the use of Bingo lingo, which assigns an often-rhyming nickname to each of the 90 numbers. Anyone who has played in a British Bingo hall has likely heard some of these distinct calls, though online play tends to do away with them.
Last Thoughts
As you can see, what people think of when you say Bingo in the UK and US looks quite different. Which of these two formats do you prefer the look of?
