If you were to step into the Casino de Monte Carlo 100 years ago you would have undoubtedly overheard eager and ambitious gamblers discussing blackjack strategy with one another before heading to a table to place their wagers.

As technology redefines our relationship with gambling, that conversation has moved from the casino floor itself to the online realm. The internet is a veritable treasure trove of articles and opinion pieces documenting in fine detail the best and most profitable blackjack strategies.

Our concern today though isn’t over the optimal mathematical play for every possible combination in a game of blackjack, rather we are going to focus on how blackjack has so seamlessly transitioned from a staple of the casino floor to mobile screens.

Read on to find out everything you need to know about the evolution of blackjack…

Origins of Blackjack
The exact origins of blackjack are unknown; some claim that the game was first derived in England and imaginatively named ‘twenty-one’. Others claim the game originated in France under the moniker ‘vingt-et-un’ or in Spain with the title ‘ventiuno’.

What we do know for sure though is that the game first appeared on record at some point in the 17th century and steadily grew in popularity over the coming centuries becoming a staple game of Europe’s premier casinos.

Then in the 19th century the game migrated over the Atlantic to the United States with the first waves of European immigration. There it blossomed and, in the country’s thriving casinos, became arguably America’s favourite table game.

The Digital Transformation
In the last decade of the 20th century savvy entrepreneurs and tech experts were exploring ways in which the newly created internet could revolutionise the world of commerce and make them incredibly rich.

There were companies like the ill-fated Kozmo that promised one-hour delivery of food, videos, music, books and groceries. Or GeoCities, the garish and unnecessarily bright web hosting firm that allowed you to make your own eccentric website.

Then of course there were the successes and there are plenty of examples of successful online gambling companies that can trace their roots back to the 1990s. Whilst modern day audiences would struggle with the aesthetics of a 90s online gambling site, they were a huge success with contemporary audiences.

Not only did they bring the thrills and spills of the casino to people’s homes, they also cashed in on the novelty aspect. Back then going on the internet in itself was a novelty, let alone bringing something so destination oriented like casino gambling into people’s houses.



(This was a seminal moment for not only gambling but a whole host of other industries.)

The Mobile Transformation
It’s something we’re sick of saying but we’re going to have to say it anyway – Steve Jobs changed the world in 2007 when he released the world’s first iPhone.

We write an awful lot of articles about technology and whether it’s a piece about gambling, shopping or entertainment we always, always have to reference Steve Jobs’ iPhone.

In terms of inventions, it really has been the most defining and seismic creation of the last 50 years for how it has shaped and influenced the modern world. When Jobs announced the iPhone back in 2007 the wheels were set in motion for widespread online gambling.

The device and its internet capabilities immediately opened up a whole new world of possibilities for online gambling companies who, until then, had been marketing themselves exclusively at PC and laptop gamers.

Now, 17 years on, the majority of people on the planet gamble through their mobile phones. For emphasis, there are more people playing blackjack on their mobile devices than land-based players and PC players combined.

The mobile gambling boom has taken one of the world’s most popular and enduring games in blackjack and elevated it to unprecedented levels of popularity; which is really something when you consider that the game outdates the founding of the United States.

In Summary
Blackjack has been hugely popular for centuries, but in the last 17 years its popularity has skyrocketed. That is testament both to the timeless appeal of the game and the savvy work of online gambling companies who capitalised on not only the dot.com revolution but also the Golden Age of the mobile device.

In terms of future predictions, what can we really say about blackjack other than we expect it to continue to enjoy huge popularity with gamblers? There are of course whispers of VR and AR technological advances that will supposedly revolutionise the way that online gambling is enjoyed, but those rumours have been circulating for a decade with no signs of bearing fruit.

That however should be of no concern to blackjack enthusiasts as they can rest assured that their favourite game is in great shape.