Whether we are talking about the millions of people that flock to the Nevadan desert each year in search of riches in Las Vegas, or the local social club that’s kept the town’s residents occupied on Saturday nights for centuries, casinos have a certain allure that is rarely rivalled.
These social houses play host to numerous different games of chance as well as five-star dining and entertainment options. That’s what has made them such an in-demand theme for corporate parties. Pop! Events’ casino parties are a blast, but before you start placing your bets let’s learn a little about the history of the casino!
Ancient origins
The word casino comes from Italian, and became a popular term for a local social house in villages sometime in the last few centuries. The word comes from casa, the Italian word for house. Despite the first true “casino” being founded in Venice in the 17th century, gambling as a social event goes back to the dawn of time. There’s evidence that the Ancient Greeks and Romans gathered together to play games of chance and enjoy each other’s company. Eventually these little houses in the village became the entertainment centers that we know today.
Old-world style. American glitz!
The casinos that we know and love today, despite being rooted in old European gambling houses, are truly an American creation. The old gambling houses of the American West were known as saloons, and seen as something dangerous and on the edges of society. Since it was far out of sight of the “more civilized” East, Western casinos grew in popularity as more and more folks headed to the frontier.
It didn’t really take off, though, until the state of Nevada legalized gambling, and a small desert railroad stop near The Hoover Dam became a magnet for American workers just itching to unwind after a hard week’s work in the hot sun. Las Vegas was born.
Casinos in the modern world
The kind of casinos once found only in Las Vegas are now common all around the world. From Macau, China to Niagara Falls, Ontario, millions and millions of people flock to them for fun, excitement, fine dining and great live concerts. Everything from business conventions to bingo happens in their halls, and the five-star hotel rooms aren’t a bad extra option, either.
All of the exciting card and dice games are the makings of a great night of fun, and that’s why people come to Pop! Events for help putting on awesome casino-themed corporate events including our Virtual Casino Events. We’ll bring the cards, you bring your skills!
See also our Virtual Casino Events.