There is evidence that the pastime of gambling dates back before the beginning of recorded human history, with paleolithic attempts at sets of dice found at archaeological sites, and the United Kingdom is no different. Here’s a look at how and why that change has taken place, as well as what might continue to happen in our always evolving digitized world. Our check out Brick Hunter.
Gambling in the United Kingdom: The (Very) Early Days
The neolithic site of Skara Brae in Scotland’s Orkney islands contains the oldest evidence of gaming culture in what is today the UK, in this case in the form of dice that are somewhere between 4,500 and 5,000 years old.
While the Roman Empire had a robust market for sports and sports betting, those activities fell into a rut during the European Dark Ages. It was England where they saw the light once again, as sports betting began to take place in its modern form during the 1500s with the popularity of English horse racing.
At times, various monarchs and other lawmakers have attempted to ban the pastime, but they never saw much luck, with gambling taking place no matter whether or not it was legal.
The types of games people play might change over the years, but gambling has carried on pretty much unchanged for centuries in the UK, with things like dice, playing cards, and sporting events used as a vehicle for people to test their luck. In the modern era, though, we’ve seen a paradigm shift begin to take place, with people shunning the games at physical locations in favor of online betting.
Online Betting: What’s All the Fuss?
As with just about anything these days, the internet is the way of the future, and more people than ever are shunning physical copies in favor of their online alternatives, whether we’re talking about e-books, e-sports or, indeed, online betting.
The chief selling point for online betting is ease of access. Convenience is the name of the game, and mobile platforms make it faster than ever to take part in the activities we love. Rather than having to travel what could be long distances to the nearest casino or sportsbook in order to play a game or place a bet, it’s as simple as whipping out your phone, downloading any requisite apps and creating or logging into an existing account, following the prompts and diving head first into the action.
Not only does this ease of access cut down on travel time: it also promotes safety, because all of the financial details are handled online. You won’t have to worry about carrying cash or a check out of a physical location if you end up raking in big winnings.
The mobile betting industry has exploded in popularity in the past few years, and it’s caught up to —and, in many cases, surpassed— its brick-and-mortar compatriots in terms of area covered.
If you head to the local casino, you may not be able to place a bet on Australian horse racing or find a casino game that perfectly fits your interests because you’re limited to the selection they have physically on hand. You certainly will be able to find what you’re looking for online, though, and new games and betting opportunities are coming out at UK Online Casinos on what feels like a daily basis. Here’s how they’ve managed to make the switch.
Replacing the Physical Games
Of course, it’s not so easy as just creating a website and letting people place wagers. The explosion of the mobile gambling industry is the result of years of technological advances and painstaking troubleshooting.
Before I started betting online, one of my chief concerns regarded how betting platforms would be able to replicate the randomness of a physical game: to ensure that the hand you’re dealt in a game of Blackjack or the spin of a digital slot machine would have the same unbiased results that you’re guaranteed at a physical casino.
Betting apps achieve these results through the use of random number generators, ones that are independently audited by third party testers on a regular basis in order to ensure compliance.
Similarly, betting platforms put a great deal of resources into cybersecurity in order to protect the personally identifiable information (PII) of their customers, like bank account numbers, addresses and other sensitive data.
Given the wave of high profile hacks against leading online brands like Google and Microsoft in recent years, it’s a testament to the cybersecurity ability of betting platforms that they’ve managed to steer clear of threats on the internet, especially when you consider the large sums of money that they deal with on a consistent basis.
