Keno was first played in 200 before Christ by the Chinese army leader, Cheung Leung who utilized keno as a way to finance his failing army. The city of Cheung was at war, and after some time appeared to be looking at a country wide famine with the drastic drop in supplies. Cheung Leung needed to come up with a fast fix for the financial adversity and to acquire income for his forces. He therefore invented the game we know today as keno and it was a wonderful success.

Keno was well-known as the White Pigeon Game, since the winning numbers were broadcast by pigeons from bigger cities to the lesser towns. The lotto ‘Keno’ was imported to America in the 19th century by Chinese newcomers who came to the States to jobs. In those times, Keno used 120 numbers.

Today, Keno is generally gambled on with eighty numbers in most of the US based casinos as well as web casinos. Keno is commonly enjoyed today because of the relaxed nature of wagering the game and the simple fact that there are little skills needed to enjoy Keno. Regardless of the fact that the chances of coming away with a win are horrible, there is always the hope that you could win quite big with very little gaming investment.

Keno is played with 80 numbers with 20 numbers picked each round. Gamblers of Keno can select from two to ten numbers and gamble on them, as much or as little as they want to. The pay out of Keno is according to the bets made and the roll out of matching numbers.

Keno grew in universal appeal in the US near the close of the 1800’s when the Chinese characters were changed with more familiar, US numbers. Lottos were not covered under the legalization of gambling in the state of Nevada in 1931. The casinos adjusted the name of the ‘Chinese lottery’ to ‘horse race keno’ employing the notion that the numbers are horses and you want your horses to place. When a law passed that taxed off track gambling, Nevada casinos swiftly altered the name to ‘Keno’.