The game of roulette that we now play it is a newcomer to the world of casino games.  Although games using wheels have been in use since soon after the roulette wheel was invented the game we know as Roulette was initially introduced to casinos in the 17th century.  Francois and Louis Blanc invented the European Roulette wheel (the one zero roulette wheel) in 1842.

Since gambling was banned in France Louis and Francois Blanc (the developers of Roulette) relocated to Germany, where the game grew to become popular.  After Germany also banned gambling Louis Blanc relocated to Monaco accepting a request to move there and develop and run a casino.  The casino was such a hit that it was able to set all of the Roulette standards in Europe.

The roulette wheel hasn’t been altered much since then.  One of the small number of alterations made to the wheel was the introduction of the color green to the roulette wheel on the double zero and zero spots.  Before this the double zero was black and the zero was red, this led to a little confusion for the players so the color was changed to green to remove this confusion.

In Europe the “En Prison” decision added one more change to Roulette.  When playing on a European wheel and the winning digit is a zero players that placed even-money wagers have a choice; they can take back one half of the initial wager, or else they can leave the bet “En Prison”.  Whenever a participant exercises the En Prison selection the bet is left until the following spin of the roulette wheel.  The participants will have their money returned (less the payoff) in the event that this next spin wins, however if the wager loses the cash is lost.  If zero wins once more, no resolution is made, the roulette wheel is spun yet again.

Roulette became glamorous when Europe’s wealthy and famous started to go to Monte Carlo to play.  The participants were dressed to the nines in formal outfits, the casino was stunningly beautiful and large sums of cash were wagered.  These items all combined to establish Roulette as the worlds most recognized casino game.

The double zero Roulette wheel grew to become the standard Roulette wheel in America.  When people refer to the “American wheel” they are talking about the double zero roulette wheel.  This wheel was very popular during the California gold rush in the American west.

Roulette is much more prevalent in Europe than in America.  Casinos in Europe derive 50% of their revenues from Roulette gaming while U.S. casinos only derive 5% of their revenues from Roulette gambling.  One explanation for this is the European casino’s make use of the single zero roulette wheel and En Prison opportunity and have a house edge of 1.35% while the U.S. casino’s make use of the double zero wheel without the En Prison option and have a house edge of 5.26%.