The Double Zero Wheel

The earliest form of roulette that is still played to this day was invented by Blaise Pascal in the 17 th century during his search for a perpetual motion machine. Pascal incidentally, went on to pioneer the field of probability. This form of roulette which still exists to this day had numbers 1 to 36 and a ‘0' and ‘00' pockets. The numbers alternated between red and black. Perhaps the only difference was that the ‘0' pocket was red and the ‘00' was black. This was later changed to green to alleviate any confusion in the casinos. This version of roulette finally found its way into the United States up the Mississippi from New Orleans into all casinos and gambling houses in the 1800's. This form of roulette with two zero pockets and a very simplified betting system later evolved to modern day American Roulette and carries a house advantage of 5.26%. Cheating, by operators and players was rampant in the United States and during the late 1800's, some proprietors, not content with a whopping 5.26% advantage, introduced a new form of the American Roulette game which had numbers 1 to 28, a ‘0', a ‘00' and an Eagle pocket. The pay out was 26 to 1 and the house edge was a massive 12.90%. People became furious in gambling dens across the states and this game was soon scrapped in favour of the original Double Zero Wheels.

The Single Zero Wheel

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic in the 1840's, gambling was outlawed in France. Two brothers, Francois and Louis Blanc moved to Homburg in Germany and introduced the first single zero roulette wheel in 1843. This new single zero roulette wheel only had a 2.70% house advantage and killed off any competition from rival casinos.


Legend has it that Francois Blanc secretly bargained with the devil to obtain the secrets of Roulette. 666 is the number of the beast and is also the sum of all the numbers 1 to 36.

The German government abolished gambling in the 1860's. Louis Blanc accepted an invitation from the Charles III, Prince of Monaco and for 2 million Francs, setup the most magnificent casino in the whole of Europe in Monte Carlo. Although the single and double zero wheels originated in France, the double zero wheel dominated in the United States and was called American Roulette. The single zero version was the mainstay in Europe and is called European Roulette.

Roulette was aptly called the ‘King of Casino Games' because it was associated with all the glitz and glamour of Monte Carlo casinos.

Single Zero Vs Double Zero Wheels

European Roulette accounts for over 50% of the revenue earned by European casinos. This is because of the low house advantage (2.70%) conferred by only one ‘0' pocket. Some casinos in Europe have the “imprison” option which further reduces the house edge to 1.35%.

Meanwhile across the Atlantic, American Roulette accounts for only 5% of revenue generated in United States casinos. The reason behind this is possibly due to the double zero wheel giving the house a 5.26% advantage. Another reason for this decline in popularity to play American roulette could be that as the gambling community grew wiser, they realized that games such as blackjack were ‘beatable' and had a relatively low house advantage.

Roulette Here And Now

These days, hundreds and thousands of casinos and online casinos are offering roulette games. The Double Zero or American Wheel is predominant in the United States, South America and the Caribbean while the Single Zero or European Wheel is popular all round the world. Scroll Down to find your favourite place to play online roulette.

References and Links

Reference : Wikipedia Entry
Images : From Wikipedia

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