Difference Between American and European(French) Roulette

Many online casinos offer two different kinds of Roulette - American and European or French. At first glance the two games may look to be the same and they almost are, but there are some major differences that separate the two games and you should make certain that you understand the rules of roulette before sitting down to play. Of course, the most obvious difference in the two games are the Roulette wheels in which they use. On the American Roulette wheel, there are 2 slots with zeros on them, one is a single zero and one is a double zero. This means that the American wheel has 38 slots with the zero slots as well as the slots numbered 1-36. As for the European Roulette(commonly known as French Roulette) wheel, there is no double zero on it, only a single zero slot giving the European wheel only 37 number slots when you add the 1-36 slots with the single zero.

American and European Roulette Odds

Of course because there are 2 amounts of slots on the wheels, the odds in favor of the house do differ a bit. Where as with the European 37 slot Roulette wheel the house only has a 2.7 edge, when playing with the American 38 slot Roulette wheel, the house edge is nearly doubled at 5.26. Another quite noticeable difference between the two games are the chips that are used. In American Roulette, they decided to keep it simple and easy for the Roulette dealer by giving each player at the table a different color of chips so that you can differentiate the bets with the players at a glance. In European Roulette, it is played more like other casino table games where all players are given the same kind of chips and the dealer and players' memories are depended upon for remembering which bet is whose.

Another big difference that is not so noticeable without actually playing the two different games is that in English and European casinos as well as many internet casinos that feature European Roulette have a special rule called the 'en prison' rule. This is a rule that allows the player a kind of surrender option similar to the surrender rule in blackjack games. The rule comes into play when the ball lands in the zero slot, at this time players will be allowed to either surrender 1/2 of their total wager, or to let their wager ride on until the ball is launched next. When you add in the en prison rule factor to European Roulette, the house edge drops nearly half from the usual 2.7% to 1.352%. This can be a good thing to keep in mind when deciding which Roulette wheel you want to place your wager on.

Another interesting article is our article on Roulette betting systems. Read this article to make sure you don't fall victim to the stereotypical "How to win at Roulette" falacy

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