Keno was created in 200 before Christ by the Chinese army leader, Cheung Leung who utilized this game as a finance resource for his failing forces. The metropolis of Cheung was waging a war, and after some time seemed to be looking at a country wide shortage of food with the dramatic decrease in supplies. Cheung Leung needed to come up with a rapid fix for the financial calamity and to create income for his army. He thusly invented the game we know today as keno and it was a wonderful success.

Keno used to be known as the White Pigeon Game, because the winning numbers were sent out by pigeons from bigger municipalities to the tinier villages. The lotto ‘Keno’ was imported to America in the 1800s by Chinese expatriates who came to the United States to work. In those times, Keno was played with 120 numbers.

Today, Keno is typically enjoyed with eighty numbers in most of American brick and mortar casinos along with web casinos. Keno is largely played today as a result of the laid back nature of betting the game and the basic reality that there are no skills needed to enjoy Keno. Regardless of the fact that the chances of winning are horrible, there is always the hope that you could win quite large with very little gaming investment.

Keno is played with 80 numbers with twenty numbers selected each round. Gamblers of Keno can select from two to ten numbers and bet on them, whatever amount they are able to. The pay out of Keno is dependent on the bets made and the matching of numbers.

Keno grew in popularity in the US near the end of the 19th century when the Chinese letters were replaced with more familiar, American numbers. Lotteries were not covered under the laws of gaming in Nevada State in 1931. The casinos renamed the ‘Chinese lottery’ to ‘horse race keno’ employing the notion that the numbers are horses and you are wanting your horses to come in. When the Nevada government passed a law that levied a tax on off track wagering, casinos quickly altered the name to ‘Keno’.