When the Blancs took a single slot out of the roulette wheel in 1843, this was a revolution. At a stroke, they created the most popular game in Europe. Why should this “tiny” change have such a major impact? It all comes down to a simple matter of odds. In the traditional version of the game, you have thirty-eight slots numbered 1-36 with two additional slots marked with a single and double zero respectively. If the ball falls into either of the zero slots, the House takes all the outside bets on the table. This gives the House an overall edge of 5.26%. But, once you remove one of those zero slots, the House edge is reduced to a “mere” 2.7%.

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Thus, the chances of anyone winning and beating the House improve dramatically in the European version. The European rules also differ. In an American casino, all outside bets are lost when the ball hits a zero but, in a European casino, you have a choice. You can either leave your bets on the table until you win or lose on the next spin (assuming it to be a number not a second zero), or you can elect to surrender half the amount you have bet. The so-called En Prison rule reduces the house edge for even money bets down to 1.35%. There are other differences in the odds which are dealt with elsewhere on this site.

Because online casinos open their internet doors to the world, an international clientele walks in. The majority of these players is used to the European version with better odds. To cater for this expectation, online casinos routinely offer both versions of the game which gives American players the option of playing when the House edge is reduced — a chance they would not have in Vegas or Atlantic City.

So what other differences are there? The first and most obvious difference when you see the real world tables in play, is the siting of the wheel. The American tables have the wheel at one end with a single layout for betting, whereas the European wheel is central with betting on the layouts on either side. The French have a slightly different layout for betting purposes. Other than the difference between the number of zeros, all other tables are the same. Then we come to the colour of the chips. In Europe, there is a separate colour for each denomination. In the US, each player has a separate set of coloured chips.

This makes it easier for the croupiers (and all the other players around the table) to see who is betting and the size of each bet. Then when the wheel has spun and the ball has fallen into a slot, the croupier must pay out all the winning bets and collect the lost bets. In Europe, the croupiers have a delicate rake which reaches out across the table to push out winning bets or collect in lost bets. The American table staff sweep the table with hands and arms.

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