Guide to Online Bingo Tournaments
When it comes to playing bingo online, many different players appreciate a certain amount of variety in the game and as a result, bingo tournaments help to provide that.
Another reason why they are so attractive is that they often have large prizes which are a great selling point for players. Let’s take a further look into online bingo tournaments and how these work.
Types of Online Bingo Tournaments you can play
In online bingo, there are a few different types of tournaments that you can take part in and these are attractive for a number of reasons. Let’s take a closer look at these and what is involved.
Leaderboard based tournaments
This type of tournament is popular in online bingo because it is associated with having a leaderboard based on the results from a series of events. The way in which these work is that there is often quite a few games that players have to play to make sure that they can qualify while there is also usually a small fee which enables you to enter.
In these games, the more successful that you are, the quicker that you rise up the leaderboard due to being awarded points for every win. In leaderboard based bingo tournaments, prizes are won based on where you have finished on it. Ultimately, it means that the higher up that you finish, the larger your payout is likely to be. Also, because these are so popular and attract a large number of entrants, it means that the prize money can be quite substantial for the winner.
Freeroll bingo tournaments
In these tournaments, which are usually popular and also ideal for players who are new to the game because significantly, they are free to enter and also it is a great way for beginners to be introduced to how bingo tournaments work. The way that these function varies from site to site. This is because for larger and more established bingo sites, it is often the case that players have the chance to win cash prizes, even for finishing second and third. However, on much smaller bingo sites, it is not unusual for these prizes to be in the form of free chips or free tickets for bingo games on their site.
Ticket bingo tournaments
While essentially, to enter a bingo tournament, you do often have to purchase a ticket, these work slightly differently. Usually, these types of tournaments can stretch out over a period of a few days which means that there are many different rounds to these events. As a player wins a round, their winnings are presented in the form of a ticket entry into the following round. This continues like this all the way up to the final and as a result, the winnings are significantly bigger than most other bingo tournaments.
Why play online bingo tournaments?
Online bingo tournaments can be a great way to really increase your winnings at a small cost. If you are patient and do not mind the tournaments lasting for days then you really do not have anything to lose.
They can also be a good chance to socialise because for bingo tournaments, in chat rooms, compared to normal games, there will usually be more entrants which can mean there is more conversation.
In addition to this, should you be new to the game then this could be a great way to see how it works, especially if you entered a freeroll tournament which would not cost you anything.
Advantages of playing bingo tournaments over normal games
While everyone will have their own interpretation about bingo tournaments and what might be a benefit and drawback, we definitely believe that there are some valid advantages to playing bingo tournaments instead of normal games which players might appreciate.
One advantage, which is particularly related to ticket based tournaments is that you are typically able to buy your ticket for a set price and as a result it means you actually can play bingo for a significant amount of time. In addition to this, if you do well during these, you actually have a chance to win substantial payouts for doing well.
Another reason why players might play tournaments instead of normal bingo games is that they may prefer the competitive nature that these offer. Knowing that they are going up against, in some cases, a large number of other people can give them an adrenaline rush, because if they win it means that they hold bragging rights, potentially even over friends.
Perhaps what could be deemed as a drawback for bingo tournaments is that there often is not as much flexibility around these in terms of when you can play, because they usually take place at a set time on a given day.
What to look out for when finding the best bingo sites for tournaments
It is often the case that not all bingo sites will have bingo tournaments and this could be for a number of reasons. Firstly, it could be that they are still small and have not established a reputation yet. It may be because bingo tournaments just simply do not form part of their strategy for growth and as a result, they might not see any value in having them on the site.
However, generally, the vast majority of bingo sites will offer tournaments to players as a way to try and differentiate their offering so that their players have a choice. When trying to find sites with bingo tournaments, there are certain things that you should look out for. Let’s take a more detailed look at these.
Licensed and regulated
This is without a doubt the most important factor to look out for. In the majority of instances, bingo sites will have licensing in place such as from the UKGC (United Kingdom Gambling Commission). What this means is that the sites are monitored on a regular basis to make sure that they are doing everything above board and complying with the legislation set out by the relevant gambling commission. It is easy to find out if a bingo site is regulated and you just simply have to scroll down to the bottom of the page.
This is because you will find the relevant logo, which is a big giveaway while it is also often displayed in writing as well. The regulators check the internet constantly which means if they come across a bingo site that claims to be licensed but it isn’t, they will take swift action. Unlicensed bingo sites do not usually run that risk though.
If a bingo site is licensed, this means that if anything goes wrong during a tournament such as you do not receive winnings or only your partial winnings, then if it comes to it, the gambling commission can look further into this. When a bingo site is licensed it means that the player ultimately has more protection.
A range of tournaments
The more tournaments that a bingo site has is a good indication that they have a lot of players who visit their site on a regular basis, while it also shows that their bingo tournaments are indeed popular. This is a good sign because the more players who take part in a bingo tournament and buy tickets, the greater the overall prize pool for the winner. Big sites like these might also offer prizes for finishing third and second as well, which is a really good selling point.
Substantial prize winnings advertised
For many players, the main reason that they enter a bingo tournament is to try and win more money than what is usually available when playing a normal game. What is usually the case, is that some sites will advertise the amount of money that can be won from playing the tournament. This is good, because if this has attracted you, then there is a good chance that it has convinced many other players to enter as well which means that it is popular.
Established brand
While there is nothing wrong with playing bingo tournaments at new sites (as long as they are licensed), quite often the more established brands may have larger prizes on offer and be able to attract more players to their site.
Final thoughts about bingo tournaments
There is definitely a lot to be said for playing a bingo tournament because it can give your experience a lot more variety. They are a great way of substantially increasing your winnings, especially if you enter a freeroll tournament that actually has a cash prize as well. As online bingo continues to increase in popularity, it is likely that tournaments will continue to attract more players. What could also be the case is that different forms of tournaments might be created by the industry as a way to try and provide more options to players. As technology continues to develop as well, the way in which players can play bingo tournaments might change as well, such as incorporating virtual reality for example.