Exploring Casino Rituals and Superstitions Around the World
Although skill plays an essential part in winning casino games, many players remain superstitious and believe certain rituals or signs will help them gain an advantage.
Popular gambling superstitions include the Maneki Neko and four-leaf clover, both believed to bring luck, wealth and prosperity.
Origins
Gamblers frequently adopt rituals and superstitions they believe will bring them luck, such as crossing their fingers, knocking on wood, stacking chips in certain patterns or kissing a companion to increase chances of winning at gambling.
Knocking on wood is an ancient superstition dating back to pagan beliefs in the supernatural power of trees, which holds that good spirits reside within their roots and touching a wooden object offers protection against bad luck.
Another superstition in casino gaming involves not counting your money when gambling online casino games, something which originated among road gamblers to avoid jinxing themselves when counting winnings on the road. Since then this superstition has expanded into other casino games as well.
Symbols
No matter your opinion on them, gambling lucky charms are an integral part of casino experiences. From four-leaf clovers and horseshoes to rabbit’s feet and other symbolic items believed to bring luck when gambling at casinos.
Another symbol of good fortune is the number seven, seen as auspicious across cultures and societies. Green is also considered lucky due to its association with money, springtime blooms and lush vegetation; conversely 13 is considered unlucky; some casinos even prohibit having 13 floors or doors as it could bring bad luck!
As it’s considered unlucky to count your chips, and as it resembles the mouth of a lion (a superstition dating back to when MGM Grand had such an entrance door), avoiding its front entrance is wiser. Crossing legs while placing bets is another popular superstition; some might prefer doing this instead with their hands.
Games
Gamblers frequently rely on superstitions to help guide their luck when gambling. Wearing certain clothes or carrying lucky charms such as rabbit’s feet or four-leaf clovers to casinos could help bring good fortune; players might also try not to step on cracks or break mirrors to ensure success.
Some gamblers will even ask an attractive woman to blow on the dice before rolling them, in what’s believed to bring good fortune but has never been demonstrated as true in practice. Although this ritual has been shown many times on film, no evidence exists to demonstrate it actually works.
Casino players often hold the belief that it is best to avoid using the front entrance, owing to tradition. At MGM Grand’s old entrance was an opening that looked like a lion’s mouth; Chinese gamblers feared they might be devoured!
Rules
Countries all around the world practice various superstitions associated with luck. While these traditions may appear strange to outsiders, their adherents believe these rituals will increase their odds of winning at casino games. Superstitions range from wearing lucky underwear or counting chips during blackjack games as ways of improving chances.
Some gamblers take extra precautions before gambling by creasing and knocking their cards before hand to bring luck, as well as wearing certain lucky charms like rabbit feet or numbers 13 (considered unlucky in many casinos) as protection from bad fortune. Others believe if they experience consecutive losses it is time to stop gambling for good; this belief, known as the gambler’s fallacy has since been disproven by statistics experts.
Regulations
Most casino gamblers rely on lucky charms and perform rituals before engaging in gambling, such as using lucky charms like rabbit’s feet as good luck charms; others might travel with an urn containing their deceased partner’s ashes in the belief it will bring luck in gambling.
As part of an increasingly popular casino superstition, crossing your fingers is thought to help protect gamblers against supernatural forces like witches and unfavorable omens. The origins of this superstition date back to medieval Christian practices, while pagan rituals may view cross signs as powerful tools that enable people to realize their wishes. Gamblers looking to increase winning odds often wear red clothes for good luck as this superstition.
