Many of you who have played roulette for a long time may know that there are two different types of roulette games. There is European roulette and its American cousin. European roulette is the most popular version in the world and is also the oldest version. This is probably due to the fact that European roulette has better odds then American roulette, because when you get down to brass tacks there isn’t a whole lot of difference between the two. Now I know that some of you who are reading this aren’t familiar with the European version of roulette, so I am going to tell you a little bit about it.

But before I can explain the differences between the two versions, I am going to have to tell you about the American version so that the two versions can be compared. The American table has a wheel that contains thirty-eight numbers. It has the numbers one through thirty-six and two zero slots (0 and 00). The zeros are green, but the rest of the numbers alternate between black and red. The numbers are also evenly divided between the even numbers and the odd numbers. Half are even and the other half are odd. The two sets of zeros on the wheels give the house an advantage of almost six percent. This is because the table pays out bets as if there wasn’t an additional zero on the wheel. Therefore, it pays out at about thirty-seven to one on a straight bet.

European roulette only has a single zero on the wheel. This creates a pretty large difference in the house advantage between European roulette and American roulette. Only having one zero gives the house the modest advantage of a little over two percent. So the European roulette table essentially doubles a players chance of winning. And European tables also have a number of different playing options that increase your odds of winning even more. The first special betting option on a European roulette table is the En Prison. En Prison allows players to recover their bet after a spin of zero, if the player bet on one of the outside bets such as high/low, red/black and even/odd. Under this rule, the bet is left until the next spin and the dealer marks it with a special marker to show that it is “in prison.” After the next spin, one of two things can happen. If the bet wins then the player receives his money back, if it loses the bet goes to the house. So it essentially gives a player an extra opportunity to win the bet. Tables that use this rule have a house advantage of only one and a half percent. A number which is inline with other popular games of chance such as poker. A variation of the En Prison rule is the La Partage rule. It is almost the same as the En Prison rule, except for one small change. Instead of the entire bet moving over to the next spin, only half of it does. The rest goes to the house.

So that is essentially the differences between the American and European roulette. But I know what your going to say. “How do I find a European Roulette table if I live in the United States?” That is a good question and its one that is not easily answered when it comes to traditional casinos. The truth of the matter is European roulette is hard to find at a traditional American casino. These casinos just don’t like the improved odds. But there is a solution for Americans wanting to play European roulette. There are hundreds of online casinos that offer these tables. So even if you live in the United States you can enjoy the excitement and the improved odds of winning that European roulette offers.