Many people are not familiar with the knowledge that there is more than one form of roulette on offer. In fact, while most people are familiar with American roulette most have never come across the second style of roulette – European roulette.
The differences between each are minor technicalities that can have certain consequences. Firstly, the American roulette wheel has a total number of thirty-eight numbers. That is, is has all the numbers ranging from one to thirty-six; then it also includes a zero (0) and a double zero (00). This extra double zero increases the house's advantage over the player. Indeed, in American roulette, the house has over a five percent advantage over the players. Statistically, this means that for every one-hundred dollars betted by a player the house earns approximately five dollars and twenty-six cents.
Alternatively, the European wheel lacks the double zero option. It follows that is also has the numbers one to thirty-six, and the zero – but no double zero. The result is that the house edge (by percentage) drops by almost half. In fact, in European roulette, for every one-hundred dollars betted by the gambler, the house earns approximately two dollars and seventy cents.
There are several other technical differences between the two games. Firstly, while American roulettes use a variety of colored chips, the European counter parts only use one color, this helps in distinguishing chips and bets between players. Additionally, while the croupiers in European casinos use rakes (a long stick type tool) to bring in all the chips, their American cousins use their hands for this purpose.