Table Game Rules: Roulette Rules
The Basics
Truly one of the classic table games in casino culture, Roulette has maintained its extraordinary popularity as a favourite game amongst both players in real-world and online casinos. Its table dominated by the distinctive gaming wheel, from which it derives its name, Roulette players' aim is to predict where a small ball will end up settling in the wheel's compartmented interior after it is spun. The most traditional Roulette wheel is segmented into 37 equal compartments, covering the numbers 0 to 36 inclusive, of which 18 are ‘black' numbers and 18 ‘red'. The ‘0' is the odd man out with a green backing.
A number of betting options attracting different odds may be selected by the player ahead of the wheel being spun to randomly determine the winning number and colour for that round of betting.
Details of Play
Three common variations of Roulette are to be found in land-based casinos worldwide and online. These are American, European and French Roulette, and we will consider the classic rules of the European game first before covering the differences found in the American and French alternatives.
European Roulette
Playing Roulette is all about selecting the bet(s) you want to make as a prediction of where the ball will end up in the Roulette wheel's rim after it has stopped spinning. The layout of the Roulette table enables players to make a number of bet types, attracting different odds, by placing their chosen value of chips on specific areas of the layout. All bets can be changed at any time up until the Roulette wheel is spun for that game.
| Bet Group | Bet Name | Description of Bet | Odds |
| 'Inside' Bets | Straight Bets | A bet on a single number | 35 to 1 |
| Split Bets | A bet on two adjacent numbers | 17 to 1 | |
| Street Bets | A bet on any three numbers on a horizontal line | 11 to 1 | |
| Square Bets | A bet placed on a block of four numbers | 8 to 1 | |
| Line Bets | A bet placed on six numbers, comprising two adjacent rows | 5 to 1 | |
| 'Outside' Bets | Column Bets | A bet placed on one of the three vertical columns | 2 to 1 |
| Dozen Bets | A bet placed on twelve consecutive numbers - high (25-36), middle (13-24) or low (1-12). | 2 to 1 | |
| High or Low Bet | A bet placed on 18 consecutive numbers, being high (19-36) or low (1-18). | 1 to 1 (‘Evens') | |
| Even Bets | Any bet placed on even/odd, red/black and low/high | 1 to 1 (‘Evens') |
The European table also has an oval area on the layout, called the ‘Racetrack', which copies the number sequence as it appears on the wheel. This space is where special bets, such as the ‘Neighbour' or ‘Voisin' bets can be placed. This layout is a convenient way to lay a group of bets on single numbers in a sequential ‘sector' on the wheel.
Should the spin produce the outcome ‘0', in European Roulette the common zero-rule is that all wagers on bets with evens odds (i.e. High or Low and Evens Bets) are lost. Occasionally you may encounter a table that operates the En Prison rule and this modifies the zero-rule so that those bets are not lost but must remain in play on the table for the next spin – if that should be a zero they are then all lost.
French Roulette
This variation of Roulette modifies the European rules so that the zero rule operates according to ‘La Partage'. This means players of the low-risk evens bets only forfeit half their wager if the spin result is a ‘0'.
American Roulette
A significant difference to note with the American variation of Roulette is the inclusion of a ‘double zero' on the wheel in addition to the standard set of numbers from ‘0' to'36'. The Racetrack is also missing from the table layout, making ‘Neighbour' bets a little less convenient to place.
Adding a ‘00' on its wheel makes American Roulette less favourable to players than its European ancestor, increasing the house edge on its bets, however to balance this negative the usual zero / double zero rule in play operates like the French game's La Partage rule.
One further difference to note with American Roulette is that the ‘00' creates a unique bet on this table called the Five Bet. Exclusively predicting an outcome of ‘0', '00', '1', ‘2' or ‘3' the Five Bet attracts odds of 6 to 1.
Playing Online
The best UK online casinos will usually offer European and American Roulette games, and probably several alternatives too introducing some novel bonus features not found in real-world clubs, so do check out a chosen online casino's game guides to see what bells and whistles they offer. Roulette is very well-suited to online casino gaming and the latest software used by the UK casinos we recommend really can deliver a very faithful rendition of the real-world experience so, if Roulette tickles your fancy, we think you won't be disappointed with the games our preferred casinos deliver their customers. Playing these selected venues also ensures that you can be confident that the ‘engine' behind their virtual Roulette wheels is an independently certified random number generator, guaranteeing fair play.
