If you’ve ever been around online roulette wheels, you know that not only are there dozens of different red and black numbers, but they aren’t in sequential order. Someone who is yet to play roulette online would be perplexed at the intricacy of the traditional roulette wheel, and that’s where LV BET comes in.
Thanks to this article, you will learn everything there is to know about roulette, such as the roulette table layout, the rules and the numbers on a roulette wheel, as well as many other features you may come across.
We’ll compare the European style of playing roulette with the American roulette wheel and we’ll also delve into the logic of why the sequence of numbers on the wheel is the way it is. To kick things off, we’ll start with some history about the roulette wheel.
ROULETTE WHEEL HISTORY
Roulette’s origins date back to the mid-17th century when a French mathematician, physicist and inventor, Blaise Pascal, created the famous roulette wheel. Roulette was accidentally created by Pascal in his pursuit to build a perpetual motion machine.
Although his efforts in making this machine were futile, those efforts gave rise to the table game we all know and love. The layout of this table game was highly influenced by other popular gambling games, including ‘Roly Poly’ and ‘Even-Odd’, whose features shine through in roulette.
Whether the birth of roulette was accidental or not, it took the world by storm as its popularity quickly spread amongst all of Europe and even made its way to American shores. Having been such a huge success, more variations of roulette quickly emerged.
Today, we can see three prominent roulette wheels featured in casinos everywhere, including French Roulette, European Roulette and American Roulette.
ROULETTE WHEEL LAYOUTS
| Roulette variant | Numbers on the wheel | House edge |
| European roulette | 37 | 2.7% |
| French roulette | 37 | 2.7% |
| American roulette | 38 | 5.25% |
| Triple-zero roulette | 39 | 7.69% |
The roulette wheel features several red numbers and several black ones. The numbers on a roulette wheel vary slightly depending on which roulette variant you play. European roulette, also known as single-zero roulette, features 37 numbered pockets. This includes all numbers ranging from one to 36, as well as a single zero-numbered pocket. European roulette also has a house edge of 2.70%.
Contrasting European roulette is American roulette which features 38 numbered pockets with numbers ranging from one to 36, a zero and a double zero numbered pocket. The house advantage increases to 5.26%, due to the double zero creating more possible outcomes. Note that both the single zero pocket and the double zero pockets are both green.
This is a great segue to introduce the different types of roulette you can find at both an online casino and an actual casino made of brick and mortar.
The French wheel was the very first roulette wheel that was invented. European roulette and American roulette followed shortly after. Although there may be some differences between them, the overall gameplay remains the same. Roulette players must predict which numbered pocket the ball will land on and place their bets on that number. The dealer will then spin the roulette wheel, throw the ball and determine the winner depending on where the ball lands.
There are several different types of bets that can be placed either on one number or a range of numbers, either by column, row, colour, odd/even and more.
Let’s delve a little deeper into the different types of roulette wheels and some key differences between them.
EUROPEAN ROULETTE
European tables feature 37 roulette wheel numbers consisting of 18 red pockets, 18 black pockets and one green pocket for the ‘0’. The numbers on the roulette wheel are laid out in an alternate pattern.
This classic game is soaked in history as it offers fast-paced gameplay and action-packed entertainment. Take this online roulette game for a spin at LV BET if you think you could take the heat.
AMERICAN ROULETTE
American and European roulette are relatively similar, but the American version of roulette does include some differences. The American roulette wheel features 38 pockets on the wheel. This consists of all 36 numbers, including the ‘0’ and the ‘00’.
Although these roulette tables share some resemblance, the ‘00’ pocket alters the layout and increases the house edge. Other than that, the American and European versions of roulette are the same. Spin the wheel at LV BET to experience these enjoyable roulette games for yourself.
FRENCH ROULETTE
French roulette closely resembles its European relative, except this game includes two additional rules known as la partage and en prison.
- LA PARTAGE — This rule comes into effect when the ball lands in the ‘0’ slot. The dealer must divide all even money bets in half; half for the house and half for the player. This rule significantly reduces the house edge from 2.70% to 1.35%, which implies that the player’s odds are more favourable when placing Outside bets.
- EN PRISON — The en prison rule is a similar variation of the la partage rule, only covering even money bets. This rule comes into play when the ‘0’ arises as the winning number. The player may decide to either win half their wager as in the la partage rule or lock their wager for the next spin. This wager would then be ‘imprisoned’, hence where en prison gets its name. If the player wins the next round, they will receive their original wager back in its entirety, if not, the wager will be lost. For example, if a player places a €100 wager on Even and the ball lands on the ‘0’ slot, the player may either take half their wager back or lock it for the next round. In the latter case, if the outcome on the next spin is an even number, then the player would win €100 back.
EUROPEAN ROULETTE WHEEL
As mentioned previously, the European roulette wheel numbers include the numbers that range between zero and 36, arranged in the following order: 0, 32, 15, 19, 4, 21, 2, 25, 17, 34, 6, 27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10, 5, 24, 16, 33, 1, 20, 14, 31, 9, 22, 18, 29, 7, 28, 12, 35, 3 and 26.
FRENCH ROULETTE WHEEL
The French roulette wheel layout is the same as that of the European roulette wheel. The only difference between the two is that European roulette wheels do not incorporate the La Partage and En Prison rules mentioned above. Some players prefer French tables to European roulette tables due to this very reason.
AMERICAN ROULETTE WHEEL
The American roulette wheel shares a lot with the French and European roulette wheel (including the ball track, the rotor and the base), only that the American wheel features a double zero that increases the house edge. The numbers are thus arranged as follows: 0, 28, 9, 26, 30, 11, 7, 20, 32, 17, 5, 22, 34, 15, 3, 24, 36, 13, 1, 00, 27, 10, 25, 29, 12, 8, 19, 31, 18, 6, 21, 33, 16, 4, 23, 35, 14 and 2.
THE LOGIC OF ROULETTE WHEELS LAYOUT
Whether it is a single-zero wheel or a double-zero wheel, the wheel layout is something that most experienced players have nailed down through sheer practice and frequent studying.
On the other hand, new players might have a hard time deciphering the layout of both single-zero and double-zero wheels. It’s important to keep in mind that, whichever the type of roulette wheel is being discussed, there is a very particular layout to a roulette wheel that makes it perfectly balanced.
- Alternating colours: The colours on a roulette wheel alternate between red and black, with the green pocket reserved for the 0. In the case of the American wheel, a second green pocket is reserved for the 00. This way, both the single zero and double zero occupy green pockets.
- Alternating roulette wheel numbers: The sequence of numbers on the wheel follows an alternation of low numbers (1-18) and high numbers (19-36). The only exception to this on a European roulette wheel is the part where the number five is adjacent to the 10. The American roulette wheel has many more exceptions to this layout, which is why it is considered much less balanced than the European wheel.
- Number ranges alternating depending on odd or even: Odd numbers should never be adjacent to one another since all wheels alternate between odd and even numbers. At most, only two odd or even numbers can be adjacent.
New players are advised to focus on the betting layout rather than the roulette table layout, since the former is much more relevant to bringing in some winning chips than the latter. One can rest assured that, at legitimate online casinos, the roulette wheel is designed to randomise the next spin of the ball, regardless of the result of previous spins. This guarantees that there’s no predicting the outcome of every single bet.
Once you’ve nailed down the roulette table layout, feel free to examine both the American and the European wheel to get accustomed to their layout. Nevertheless, this will not help you successfully call bets before the ball starts spinning — it will simply help you track where every roulette number is situated.
To bring this segment to a close, it must be pointed out that the layout of the roulette wheel was very cleverly designed, with the purpose being to create a balanced platform on which a ball can spin. The random element of roulette is what makes it one of the most popular casino games in the world.
THE ROULETTE BETTING TABLE LAYOUT
There are a couple of things to take note of when examining the table layout of roulette. Inside the betting area, one will see all the individual numbers featured in the wheel. Keep in mind that this differs slightly depending on which type of roulette you play. You will find columns for the Odd/Even and Red/Black bets outside the betting area, along with any other groups of numbers included in the Inside, Outside and Neighbour bets.
The numbers inside the betting area are arranged in twelve rows and three columns. When playing at a Live Casino, players are presented with a horizontal table layout where the Inside and Outside bets would be in the centre, and the Neighbour bets would be on the right. The placement of such bets might differ depending on the roulette variant being played.
THE ROULETTE BALL
In brick-and-mortar casinos, roulette balls are chosen very thoughtfully. The weight and size of the ball are frequently alternated in order to keep the game as unpredictable as possible, especially given the frequent attendance of veterans at roulette games.
Most roulette balls were usually made of ivory, but this is largely not the case anymore. Casinos now opt for resin or ceramic balls, sometimes even ivorine balls — made from synthetic ivory.
In any case, the purpose behind these choices is to retain the unpredictable element of all types of roulette.
FAQ
How many numbers on a roulette wheel are there?
European tables feature 37 roulette wheel numbers consisting of 18 red pockets, 18 black pockets and one green pocket for the ‘0’. The numbers on the roulette wheel are laid out in an alternate pattern.
American and European roulette are relatively similar, but the American version of roulette does include some differences. The American roulette wheel features 38 pockets on the wheel. This consists of all 36 numbers, including the ‘0’ and the ‘00’.
What is the highest number on a roulette wheel?
The highest number on the roulette wheel is 36, and this goes for every type of roulette out there. The difference between roulette variants is the sequence of numbers as well as the added 00 in American roulette.
How many black numbers are there on a roulette wheel?
There are a total of 18 black numbers are there on a roulette wheel (15, 4, 2, 17, 6, 13, 11, 8, 10, 24, 33, 20, 31, 22, 29, 28, 35 and 26). The same goes for red numbers (32, 19, 21, 25, 34, 27, 36, 30, 23, 5, 16, 1, 14, 9, 18, 7, 12 and 3). The green numbers are 0 and, in the case of American roulette, 00.
The two totals combined (36), in conjunction with the 0, bring the total to 37. In the case of American roulette, the 00 brings the total to 38.
How many red numbers are there on a roulette wheel?
There are a total of 18 red numbers (32, 19, 21, 25, 34, 27, 36, 30, 23, 5, 16, 1, 14, 9, 18, 7, 12 and 3) on a roulette wheel. The same goes for black numbers (15, 4, 2, 17, 6, 13, 11, 8, 10, 24, 33, 20, 31, 22, 29, 28, 35 and 26). The green numbers are 0 and, in the case of American roulette, 00.
The two totals combined (36), in conjunction with the 0, bring the total to 37. In the case of American roulette, the 00 brings the total to 38.
Which is the most advantageous roulette table layout?
The most advantageous roulette wheel is European and French roulette, owing to the fact that both variants only include one 0. The added 00 in American roulette means that this variant has a higher house edge than the other two.
The difference between the house edge is very significant. European and French roulette include a house edge of 2.7%, whereas the figure stands at a whopping 5.25% — almost double that of the other two variants.
Nevertheless, it must be noted that there is no such thing as ‘advantageous’ roulette games. Seeing as roulette is a game of luck, players bet according to strategies that aim to cover as many possibilities as possible while being mindful of the house advantage.
Which is the most popular online roulette wheel type?
European roulette is the most popular type of roulette played at casinos nowadays. The primary reason for this is the single zero, which places the house edge at 2.7% — a stark contrast from that of American roulette, which stands at 5.25%.
Where can i play roulette?
If you would like to give roulette a go, you will find plenty of roulette variations and other casino games at LV BET. You could also take a crack at the demo version of RNG roulette that would allow you to play for free. We highly recommend beginners to give this demo a spin as with this free-play version you can get used to all the mechanics and functions roulette has to offer. When you feel ready, you can then play for real money. With a Live Casino partner like Evolution, we’re able to offer you a truly spotless gaming experience.