If you ever take a peek into the history of roulette you are met with an interesting story of science, royalty and mysticism. After Blaise Pascal created the first roulette wheel in France for his science, the game eventually took its shape into the casino classic we now know. After traveling through Europe, it found its way in Germany where competing casinos offered two versions of the roulette wheel. One casino enjoyed the comfortable house edge of a roulette wheel with a 0 and 00, while the other made an effort to burst into the market with only one single 0 slot on its wheel.

Luckily Europeans aren’t the only ones allowed to play this version since its house edge is half of the American roulette wheel at 2.7%. In fact, the term “European” roulette is a broad idea and typically means a roulette wheel with a single zero and is not restricted to European casinos. Often you will hear the term “French” roulette to describe a few certain other particulars that could further differentiate the American version from its French relative.

Another great advantage with the European roulette is the additional rules that can be used to decrease the house edge even more. One great rule to understand is called “la partage” and means that if the roulette ball lands on the 0, those bettors with money on the outside bets will get half their money back. That’s right, half your money back for a losing bet when the ball lands on 0, decreasing the house edge to an even lower 1.35%.

Also check out the “en prison” rule. This rule in European roulette means that if the ball lands in the 0 slot, your money is put “in prison” until the next spin. If on the next spin your number (from the previous spin) is hit, then your bet is released without any winnings. It could help you to inquire a step further on this rule, since in some countries you will see a double imprisoned rule. If the ball hits zero in a game of “en prison” roulette, then on the next spin hits zero again, what happens? In some cases your bet is double imprisoned and to have your money released you will have to hit your number twice in a row. Seem impossible? In some casinos there is a rule that would give you the option to take half of your bet out of prison instead of trying your luck with the double imprisoned situation.

As you enter the exciting world of roulette you may also find out the option to make a “called” or “announced” bet. A called bet means you place a bet without the money to back it. This is not legal in the US or UK, but may be allowed in some casinos elsewhere in the world. An announced bet is a bet that is similarly called out, but the money is placed on the table to back before the dealer calls an end to the bets. To make these bets you should note the way that the roulette wheel is referred to in three big sections. The biggest section of numbers is called “voisins du zero”, which means the “neighbors of zero” and are the numbers around zero. Across from these are the “tiers du cylinder”, meaning the third, and it is directly across from the voisins on the wheel. Lastly are the “orphelins”, or orphans, and they are two slices wedged between the voisins and tiers.

European roulette offers some advantages for the player over the American version. There are several rules that may seem complicated at first. If you are anxious to try these rules out, the online casinos offer absolutely free rooms to do so. Get comfortable with the style and flow of play whichever version you like to play.