Casino is an establishment for gambling, often with a variety of games and entertainment. The casino industry is a large source of income for many nations, and the largest casinos in the world are often located in cities with the most tourism, such as Las Vegas, Macau and Singapore.
While modern casinos may include shopping centers, lighted fountains and elaborate themed hotels, they would not exist without the millions of people who gamble there each year. The money earned from bets on games of chance – such as slots, blackjack, craps and keno – provide billions in annual profits for casinos.
Gambling has been around for thousands of years, with primitive protodice and carved six-sided dice found in archaeological sites. But the casino as a place to find a wide variety of ways to gamble under one roof did not appear until the 16th century, when a gambling craze swept Europe. Italian aristocrats formed private clubs known as ridotti, where they could meet and gamble in a social setting.
In the United States, casino gambling is legal in 40 states. The industry is regulated at the state level, and a national gaming commission oversees operations. Casinos employ a combination of physical security forces and specialized surveillance departments that monitor everything that happens on the casino floor from a central control room, sometimes referred to as the “eye in the sky.” These cameras can be adjusted by security workers in the control room to focus on suspicious patrons or a specific table.