Roulette Fun Facts & History

Roulette is one of the oldest and most popular casino games. It can be played at brick-and-mortar casinos and at online gambling sites. In this article, we take a look at some of the best Roulette fun facts and the history of the casino game. Continue reading to learn more.

An Introduction to Roulette

No matter which version of Roulette you are playing, the basic rules do not differ a great deal. The game is focused on the spinning wheel, which has been divided into colored numbered segments. A ball is released into the wheel and all players have to do is bet on which segment it will come to rest on.

There is a betting period at the start of a round during which you need to place your chips on the betting area. When the betting period is over, the ball is released and all you need to do is wait to see where it stops.

As such, it is a very simple game. However, it has been cleverly designed to greatly expand the betting options. For instance, you will notice that the numbers do not run sequentially around the wheel, that the numbers are colored red or black (except for zeros, which are green), and that the betting area has a very specific layout.

This means that players can bet on a single number and groups of numbers. Broadly speaking there are two types of groups. There are groups of numbers that share characteristics. Examples include the odd, even, red or black numbers. Additionally, there are groups that are formed by the layout of the betting area and the wheel.

As a result, no matter what form of Roulette you are playing, there will be many different types of bets available to you. It is important that you understand how to use them all in order to build the best strategies.

The Main Roulette Variants

There are three main Roulette variants that are found at online and land casinos, and there is not a huge difference between them.

At most casinos, you will find European Roulette, French Roulette and American Roulette. European Roulette uses a wheel that is divided into 37 numbered segments, from 0 to 36 inclusive. American Roulette wheels have an additional 00 segment, making a total of 38. This increases the house edge from 2.7% to 5.26% but it also changes the betting options, which is why some players prefer to play it.

French Roulette is very similar to European Roulette, and it is also played with a wheel featuring 38 numbered segments. However, there are a few key differences. The first is that the game uses French betting terms and that the betting area is labelled in French. However, the bets are actually the same as in in European Roulette, so you do not really need to speak a word of French in order to play.

More importantly, there are two possible extra rules found in French Roulette. The first and most common of these is the La Partage rule. It means that if the ball stops on 0, then half of all even money bets are returned to players, which of course lowers the house edge. The second is the En Prison rule, but it is rare to find this online. The rule states that if the ball lands on 0, then all bets remain on the table for the next round and if the bet wins on the next spin then the bet is returned to the player.

Roulette Bets

As mentioned, there are many different types of Roulette bets. There are two main categories of bets, Inside Bets and Outside Bets, and these can all be placed with a single chip. Inside Bets are those that require chips to be placed within the betting area, while Outside Bets require the chips to be placed on the perimeter of the betting area.

It can become slightly confusing as American Roulette has bets that are not available in European/French Roulette, while French Roulette uses different terms for the same bets. However, the bets themselves are easy to understand and here an explanation of each:

Inside Bets

• Straight Up: This is the simplest kind of bet; it is on an individual number. Place your chips in the middle of the number on the betting area. It pays 35:1
• Split Bet: This is a bet on two numbers that are next to one another on the betting area. You need to place the chips on the line dividing the two numbers, for example on the line between 7 and 10. It pays 17:1
• Street Bet: On the betting area, you will see that there are twelve rows of three numbers, these are known as ‘Streets’. To bet on a street place the chips on the lower edge of the street. For instance, to place a street bet on 4, 5 and 6 you need to place your chip on the outer line on the number 4. Bets on 0, 1 and 2 or 0, 2 and 3 are special street bets and the chips should be placed on the ‘T’ section dividing the three numbers. These bets pay 11:1.
• Corner Bet: This is a bet on four numbers whose corners meet on the betting area, for example 14, 15, 17 and 18. The chips should be placed at the corner where all four numbers meet. It pays 8:1.
• Line: This is a bet on two neighboring streets, a total of six numbers. Place the chips on the lower edge of the betting area at the ‘T’ section where the two streets meet. It pays 8:1.
• Basket: This is a bet on the numbers 0, 1, 2, 3. Place the chip on the lower corner where 0 and 1 meet. It pays 6:1.

Outside Bets

• Column Bet: The betting area features three columns of 12 numbers. To bet on all the numbers in one column place the chips in one of the boxes labelled ‘2 to 1’ at the end of the appropriate column. The labelling may differ slightly from game to game, but the appropriate segments can be found above the numbers 34, 35 and 36. It pays 2:1.
• Dozen Bet: The numbers on the roulette wheel (excluding 0) can be divided into three groups of twelve, 1 – 12, 13 – 24 and 25 – 36. To bet on all the numbers in one group place the chips in one of the boxes labelled ‘1st 12’, ‘2nd 12’ or ‘3rd 12’. It pays 2:1.
• Red/Black Bet: This is a bet on all the red numbers or all the black numbers on the wheel. Place the chips in either the red or the black square on the betting area. It pays 1:1.
• Even/Odd Bet: This is a bet on either all the odd or all the even numbers on the wheel. Place the chips in the area marked ‘Even’ or ‘Odd’ on the betting area. It pays 1:1.
• Low/High or 1 to 18/19 to 36 Bet: This is another bet that may be labelled slightly differently from game to game, but in short the numbers 1 – 18 are considered ‘Low’ and the numbers 19 – 36 are ‘High’. To bet on either group place the chips in the boxes marked ‘1 to 18’ / ’Low’ or ’19 to 36’ / ’High’ in the betting area. It pays 1:1.

French Roulette Terms

As mentioned, French Roulette uses the same bets, but with different terminology. Here is a table showing the English and French terms.

Racetrack Bets

When you are playing European or French Roulette, there is another category of bets called Call or Announce bets.

On a standard racetrack you can place the following bets.

• Voisins du Zero: This means ‘Neighbors of Zero’ in French. It is a bet on the numbers that neighbor 0 on the Roulette wheel. Looking at the wheel, this bet covers all of the numbers from 22 clockwise to 25. In other words, close to half of the wheel. The bet takes nine chips to place: a split bet on each of 4/7, 12/15, 18/21, 19/22 and 32/35, and two chips on the triplet 0/2/3 and two chips on the corner bet 25/29.
• Tiers du Cylindre: This translates as ‘Third of the Wheel’ and it is a bet on an exact third of the wheel, the numbers in the third opposite 0. The bet requires six chips, each one placed on a different split bet: 5/8, 10/11, 13/16, 23/24, 27/30 and 33/36.
• Orphelins: This translates as ‘Orphans’ and it is a bet on the numbers that aren’t included in either a Tiers du Cylindre or a Voisins du Zero bet. The bet covers 8 numbers and requires 5 chips. One chip is placed on the number 1 and one on each of the following splits: 6/9, 14/17, 17/20 and 31/34.
• Jeu Zero: This translates as ‘Zero Game’ and it also refers to the numbers closest to zero. All the numbers covered by this bet are also in the Voisins, but they are placed differently. It covers the numbers 12, 35, 3, 26, 0, 32 and 15. The bet requires four chips to place: a straight up bet on 26 and split bets on 0/3, 12/15 and 32/35.

Neighbors Bets

There are two other common types of Roulette bet that you will find shortcuts for in most games.

• Neighbors: This is a bet on a number and the two numbers either side of it on the roulette wheel. The bet requires five chips and they are all placed as straight bets. For instance a neighbors bet on 10 would place a chip on 5, 8, 10, 23 and 24. However, in some games you can adjust the neighbor bet to cover even more numbers.
• Final Bet: This is a bet on all the numbers that have the same last number. For example, a final bet on the number 3 would place chips on 3, 13, 23 and 33. They are placed as straight bets.

The History of Roulette

There is some debate about the exact origins of Roulette, but many historians believe that the French physicist and mathematician Blaise Pascal invented a basic form of the game while he was trying to create a perpetual motion machine.

There is evidence that the game has been played in its present form since as early as 1796 in Paris. A description of the game is present in the French novel La Roulette, ou le Jour by Jaques Lablee, which was published in 1801.

Until the late 1790s, the Roulette wheel found in Paris casinos used red for the single zero and black for the double zero. In order to avoid confusion, zero was changed to green in the early 1800s. Single zero Roulette was introduced in 1843 in the German spa town Bad Homburg by the Frenchmen François and Louis Blanc. They did so in order to compete with the other casinos that offered the game with the zero and double zero segments.

Roulette become popular across Europe and the US in the nineteenth century. It was soon one of the most famous casino games. When the German government abolished gambling in the 1860s, the Blanc family moved to the last legal gambling location in Europe, Monte Carlo, where they established a gambling hub for the European elite. It was there that single zero Roulette became the standard form of the game. Gradually it spread to the rest of the world, apart from the US. In the US, the double zero version remains dominant.

Roulette Today

The modern American Roulette game was developed in gambling dens across new territories where temporary games were set up. In the early twentieth century, the only casino locations of note were Monte Carlo, where single zero Roulette was played, and Las Vegas, where the double zero version was played.

Towards the end of the century, gambling moved online, and now thousands of players around the world enjoy both versions of Roulette.

Playing Roulette Online vs A Land-Based Casino

In terms of the actual game, there is no difference between playing Roulette online or in a land casino, although you may find many more variants of it online than in even the biggest land casinos.

However, the experience of playing is completely different. In land casinos, the Roulette tables will often attract a crowd, especially if there is a player on a winning streak, and this creates a hugely exciting atmosphere. Playing online, especially RNG versions of the game, is a far more solitary experience, and even the best live dealer games do not truly replicate an authentic casino ambience.

However, there are advantages to playing online. To begin with, you do not need to worry about travelling to a casino or casino dress codes. Furthermore, when playing online you are likely to find tables with far lower betting limits, so you can play with a smaller budget. In addition, there is no time limit when placing bets online, so can take all the time you need to consider your next move.

Ultimately, Roulette is hugely enjoyable when played in either setting and there is no reason why you shouldn’t enjoy both forms of the game at times that are convenient to you.

Roulette Fun Facts

Now that we have reviewed the rules and the history of Roulette, it is time to look at the best Roulette fun facts. Keep in mind, Roulette can be one of the best jackpot games to play. Some variants of the game have a progressive jackpot linked.

• All the numbers on the Roulette wheel add up to 666. This is why it is sometimes referred to as “the devil’s game”.
• The Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky was addicted to Roulette for many years. He drew upon his experiences when writing his novel The Gambler.
• In a land casino, Roulette is played with different chips. Each player has his/her own color so that the croupier can tell who gets the winnings on each bet.
• In California, Roulette is played with cards due to specific gambling laws. The rules state the only device that can be used to generate a result is a deck of cards.
• In a land casino, it is considered rude to bring a drink with you to the Roulette table. This is not the case for Blackjack or Craps.
• At the Rio Casino in Las Vegas, the number 19 hit seven times in a row. The chances of that happening are 1 in 3 billion.
• A man called Ashley Revell from the UK sold all of his possessions and bet $135,000 on red. He won and walked away with $270,000.

The Bottom Line

We hope that you have enjoyed reading about the history of the game and Roulette fun facts. Some of the best stories in Roulette are the ones in which players double up their winnings or the table produces a moment of magic (such as seven identical results in a row).

Roulette can be one of the best casino games to play as it is ultimately down to sheer chance. Essentially, the game can lead to lucrative winnings and even potentially have a progressive jackpot linked to it. You can find variants with jackpots linked at our latest jackpot ratings page.

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