UK Online Casinos

The United Kingdom is the first group of countries to have legal online casino gambling. The UK, namely the UK Gambling Commission, has worked to develop criteria for licensing and regulating online casinos that accept UK players.

This has opened the door to many operators who are now seeking to become approved UK online casinos. To receive a license, UK Casinos must apply for an online gambling license and comply with stringent guidelines.

All the casinos listed here adhere to UK laws including the prevention of underage and problem gambling.

History of Casino Gambling in the UK

Gambling has a long and varied history in the United Kingdom. While sports betting and lotteries are among the favorite gambling entertainments of most UK citizens, casinos have sprung up throughout England, Scotland and Wales.

Many of these land-based casinos are free-standing facilities, while others are attached to hotels that cater to international clientele. Still other casinos, especially in Scotland, are linked to resorts offering other activities such as golfing.

While the first modern casino was established in Monaco in 1861, the United Kingdom only legalized casino gambling in 1960. Until then, British citizens traveled to Europe to gamble for real money.

As with many traditions in England, a strong affection for gambling can be traced back to the extraordinary ruler, King Henry VIII. Poor Henry has become so often overshadowed by his six marriages that people forget what a Renaissance man he truly was. He was highly educated in languages, politics and religion, a skilled athlete, a superb musician and stunningly handsome in his younger days. Added to this he was an avid dice player.

However, when he found out his soldiers were spending more time betting than training for war, he banned gambling from his army. Henry VIII was not a man to see the hypocrisy in his own behavior.

With that kind of royal approval, gambling became the pastime of many kings of England. Sir Thomas Neale, who has a street named after him in Covent Garden, was essentially croupier to the kings. As a groom to Charles II, James II and William III, Neale's primary task was making sure the King’s table was equipped with dice, cards and courtiers willing to lose money to His Majesty. In 1684 Charles II assigned Neale the role of overseeing London's gambling, including shutting down illegal gambling dens (presumably those without paying for a Crown license to operate).

Gambling was a major social problem in the 1700s, causing the rise and fall of many. A poor person could leave the slums thanks to his gambling winnings, while England's aristocracy could just as easily fall to the slums. The 2008 movie, "The Duchess," starring Keira Knightly and Ralph Fiennes, recounts the life of Georgiana Spencer Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, who was so fond of gambling that she died leaving behind the modern equivalent of £3,720,000 (some $600,000 US) in debts. Although the Duchess tried to hide her gambling losses from her husband, at her death the Duke replied to news of his lady's debts with, "Is that all?"

A century later much had changed in the gambling world. In 1828 William Crockford, with the backing of the Duke of Wellington, opened what has become now London’s oldest casino. Today this establishment remains London’s most exclusive casino. While most UK casinos require a minimum dress code of "business casual," the more exclusive casinos through England, Scotland and Wales request that players adhere to a stricter code of personal grooming.

Wellington Street near Covent Garden had a longtime reputation as the center for prostitutes, thieves and most illegal activity in London. In the 1800s, Wellington Street welcomed the establishment of the Victoria Sporting Club, where gentlemen could bet on horse races and other sports. Members of this club, however, refused to refer to their pastime as gambling, giving it a new title, "gaming." The reference has stuck, especially in regions such as the United States where there remains some resistance to casino gambling.

Today UK gambling, including casinos, is regulated by the Gambling Commission on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) under the Gambling Act 2005. This legislation significantly updated UK gambling law, including welcoming gambling websites and allowing larger resort-style casinos to be built.

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