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American Roulette & European Roulette Explained on Slotland
Though Roulette originated in 16th century France, it quickly caught on in the Americas as a glamorous and exciting game of chance. The Old World version is known as European roulette, which is the most famous and well known version played today. American Roulette originated much later and has minor differences compared to its European cousin. Slotland Casino offers online roulette and online poker as well.
The European game has as its central character a wheel, upon which the croupier or dealers ball is thrown, and a table, where bets are placed by all the players. Numbers are engraved into the perimeter of the roulette wheel, from 1 to 36, with each number being either red or black. This results in an equal number of blacks and reds, odd and even numbers, as well as high (18-36) and low (1-17) numbers. Apart from 36 numbered slots, there is a single green slot bearing the number zero.
The green slot is also known as the “house number” because it maintains a small house edge against the players. Else, if a player were to wager on “black” or “red”, the odds would be 50/50 that the ball would land on red or black. This would be identical odds to flipping a coin for heads or tails. The single green zero slot adds a 37th slot in the roulette wheel that the ball can land on, making the odds of the ball landing in red or black slightly less than 50/50. Due to the random movement of the ball, if it ends up on the green slot, then all bets on “red” or “black” will lose to the house, or casino. This ensures that the casino always has a 2.70% edge, playing by European roulette rules.
When you play American Roulette, the game is essentially the same as the European version, but for one difference. There is an extra green slot on the wheel, called the “double zero” or “00”. This makes a total of 38 slots that the ball could land on. This nearly doubles the house edge to 5.26% compared to the European version. Players stand to lose more money but they get a faster game.
Theres one more quirk in European roulette strategy. There, players have an option to use the “en prison” rule. This allows a player to either surrender half of his/her “outside” wagers, or to leave them for the next game, if the zero comes up.
When you factor this “Surrender” option, the house advantage drops even lower in European Roulette, taking it to 1.352 percent (from 2.7%), which makes the Old World game even more lucrative for a player, compared to the 5.26% House edge in the United States.
Whether you choose to play American Roulette or play European Roulette, we at Slotland are sure you will enjoy both!
Roulette Odds and Betting
Everyone goes gaga over the roulette wheel and the roulette table but the sensible players always lay stress on roulette odds. Roulette odds clearly define the chances to win or lose. Betting in roulette has its risks and the better you understand the odds the better you can take risks.
Due to the house edge difference between American and European roulette wheels the odds are slightly better in the latter. The American roulette wheel has 38 slots while the European wheel has 37 slots. This is due to the presence of 00 in the American wheel. The house edge in an American wheel is 5.26% compared to 2.70% in a European wheel.
Given below is a comparison of odds between the American and the European roulette wheels.
For a straight bet the odds in an American wheel are 2.63% and in an European wheel are 2.70%. Payout is 35 to 1.
For a split bet the odds in an American wheel are 5.26% and in an European wheel are 5.40%. Payout is 17 to 1.
For a street bet the odds in an American wheel are 7.89% and in an European wheel are 8.10%. Payout is 11 to 1.
For a square bet the odds in an American wheel are 10.53% and in an European wheel are 10.80%. Payout is 8 to 1.
For a column bet the odds in an American wheel are 15.79% and in an European wheel are 16.20%. Payout is 5 to 1.
For a dozen bet the odds in an American wheel are 31.58% and in an European wheel are 32.40%. Payout is 2 to 1.
For high bets, low bets, even bets, odd bets, red bets and black bets the odds in an American wheel are 46.37% and in a European wheel are 48.60%. Payout is 1 to 1.
There is an additional five number bet that can be made on the American wheel where bets are made on a combination of 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. The odds are 13.16% and the payout is 6 to 1.
As you can see the odds are reversely proportional to payouts. The more risks you take the more you get paid. This is something that has to be kept in mind when betting roulette. Understanding the odds is something one has to do first because this is basic as far as the game of roulette is concerned.