History of Gambling in Mexico

Gambling has been an active part of society in Mexico since the 19th century, due in part to the historical prohibition of gambling in the USA. The true history of gambling in Mexico dates further back than the Aztecs as some form or another of gambling has appeared throughout the ages, whether for recreation or sports-like events.

Casinos became very prevalent in Mexico in the 1920's as Americans flocked south to place their wagers in a legal venue. Unfortunately for them, in 1937, Mexico took on the same attitude as the United States of America, criminalizing gambling activities. Many casinos were forced to close their doors, though the Casino Hotels managed to remain in business simply through their hotel venture. Hotel Rosarito in Tijuana, one of the most notable hotel casinos at that time, turned their casino floor into a ballroom dancing hall.

The ban on gambling in Mexico was only lifted in recent years, allowing for the building of new casinos across the country. Licenses granted by the government restrict casinos to building in only a few locations, yet Mexico has still managed to rank fourth among the world's gambling industries.

Not all gambling venues have been legalized in Mexico. In fact, by law, most casino activities are still formally illegal, however a host of loopholes have been exploited that the government is allowing as it brings in a massive revenue during festival seasons.

History of Gambling in the USA

The predominant history of gambling in the USA began in the 1600's as French, Spanish and English settlers came to the 'New World', bringing with them a love for gambling in all forms, including horse racing, poker and casino style. Casinos took much longer to catch on, however, as poker and horse racing required only a deck of cards or a few speedy horses.

Poker played a large roll in the history of frontiersmen as the adventure of traversing the continent in search of wealth can quite easily be compared to the risk taking, excitement and hopes of prosperity from a good poker game. It is believed by many that the common qualities of these two actions are what made gambling so popular in the west.

Gambling made it's way from the south, up the Mississippi River, as aristocratic travelers engaged in gambling on river-boats as they headed north. Eventually, flashy river-boats were designed specifically to attract gamblers - hence the historical 'river boat gambling era' of the early to mid 1800's. This was brought to an abrupt end by the Civil War as the river ways were needed to carry supplies.

Lottery games in the USA have a deep history as well, used by the government to raise funds for various needs. These lotteries were quite successful for awhile, though they became less trustworthy and more corrupt over time. Notably was the U.S. lottery held to benefit the beautification of Washington D.C. The organizers of the lottery absconded with the profits and the winner was left holding a winning ticket, but no reward.

Puritans throughout history despised gambling and sought to have it outlawed completely. It was not considered a virtuous way of life - anything without virtue was unacceptable to Puritans. Because of this waxing and waning attitude, the USA has seen fluctuating gambling laws throughout the centuries - prohibition, limited legalization, further gambling bans, until finally many forms of casino gambling and lotteries were reinstated.

Starting with the 1940's, casinos became legal in certain states, until present day where most states have some form of casino gambling or another. For example, California may legally operate casino establishments, but Blackjack remains illegal. To bypass this law, California casinos came up with a new game, much like Blackjack, but seeking a winning total of 22, rather than 21.

Many states offer state-regulated lotteries as well, with the proceeds going to different venues. These vary by state, but include schools, senior citizens, housing, etc.

Between 1987 and 1988, Native Tribe's were given the rights to operate casinos without interference from state or federal governments and regulations. The only requirement was that a Native Tribe Casino may only operate in a state where casino operations in general are legal.

History of Gambling in Canada

Gambling was first brought to Canada by the early French settlers, though by 1892 Canada had imposed a complete ban on gambling in all provinces. Since that time, the government has been gradually lifting the ban.

The Criminal Code of Canada first allowed certain forms of gambling back into circulation by reforming the law to create a charitable gaming exemption. Small scale gambling activities were allowed, leading to an amendment of the Criminal Code in 1969 that gave provincial governments the opportunity to offer federal and state-run lotteries. These lottery programs were utilized to fund various needs of Canada, such as the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.

As the 1970's rolled around, Quebec had established two separate Crown corporation - one to supervise provincial lotteries and the other to supervise horse racing. The citizens of Quebec had long sought legalization of gambling, therefore welcomed the introduction of these corporations with open arms.

Seeing the rampant success of Quebec's new systems, other provinces quickly jumped on the band wagon. Manitoba established a lottery system in 1971, followed by Alberta and Saskatchewan. British Columbia conjoined with the Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta lotteries in 1974, establishing the now famous Western Canadian Lottery Foundation.

Casino gambling worked it's way back to legal status as well, with casinos now operating legally in all provinces with the exception of Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.

The specific gambling laws distinctly differentiate between the types of casino gambling machines that are and are not legal in individual provinces - Slot Machine and Video Lottery Terminals (VLT's). Slot machines are legal in all of the provinces, aside from those listed above where casino gambling is prohibited. VLT's, on the other hand, are legal in all provinces except for British Columbia and Ontario.

Canada now retains a massive revenue whose rapid growth began with further amendments to the Canadian Criminal Code in 1985. Gambling has since become an enormous business in Canada and continues to grow with increasingly profitable success.