Players cannot bet on the zero number/pocket, and this is where the differences between the two versions begin – a European Roulette wheel has one zero pocket and an American Roulette wheel has two (marked with ‘0’ and ‘00’). The dealer then spins the wheel and if the ball lands on a predicted number and/or event, the player wins the bet.

The aim in all roulette games is for the player to place bets on specific numbers and/or events (these are called ‘outside bets’ – for example betting on odd/even, black/red, 1-12, etc.). Taking technological innovation further, today many online casinos offer live-dealer Roulette games which enable to play Roulette at a real table from the comfort of your own home. When casino proprietors there wanted to increase the house edge they reintroduced the double zero-pocket which is today the most distinct feature of the American Roulette wheel.įast forward to 1994 when Roulette was introduced to the internet with the launch of the first online casino. Several years later they brought Roulette back to France upon the request of Prince Charles of Monaco III, hence the origin of the name ‘French Roulette’.Įuropean Roulette was introduced to America by European settlers that landed in Louisiana in the early 19th century. As gambling became illegal in France, French brothers Fancois and Louis Blanc introduced in 1842 the first single-zero pocket Roulette game at a spa casino in Baden Hamburg, Germany. Although associated today with the American Roulette wheel, Pascal’s version of the game originally had two ‘zero’ pockets. Closer to Roulette as we know it today, Roman and Greek soldiers in ancient times used to play betting games involving spinning a shield or a chariot wheel.īut it is most widely believed that Roulette was invented by French math wizard Blaise Pascal sometime in the 17th century.

Some believe it is based on an ancient Chinese board game that required to arrange 37 animal figurines in a magic square. There is no unanimous agreement on the origins of Roulette. So we gathered in this article all the information you need for deciding which side of the Atlantic you take in the showdown between American Roulette vs European Roulette. At first glance many casino players cannot tell the difference, but each Roulette variation has its own rules and odds, and a closer look at the tables and wheels of each game reveal even more differences. Roulette is one of the most popular casino games in the world, and almost as common is the debate on the difference between American and European Roulette.

Why roulette wheel layout