European roulette - American roulette

Meanwhile, back on the continent, two innovative brothers from France, went in the opposite direction. Francois and Louis Blanc introduced the first single zero roulette wheel in 1842. They left France, where gambling was illegal, and set up a house in Homburg, Bavaria (now Germany). The new single zero wheel, with a 2.70% edge instead of the double zero's 5.26% edge, was an instant hit. It decimated the competition. When gambling was outlawed in Germany, Louis Blanc (who survived his brother) accepted an invitation from the Prince of Monaco, Charles III, for whom Monte Carlo was named. For a cost of 2 Million Francs, he was allowed to establish and operate the magnificent casino that sets all the standards in Europe.

Although both the double zero and single zero wheels originated in France, the double zero became known as the American Wheel, because it survived in the states. The popularity of the single zero wheel had supplanted the double zero wheels in Europe and consequently was dubbed the French Wheel. In Europe, the option of En Prison was offered, further lowering the house edge, on even money wagers, down to 1.35%! No wonder the game accounts for over 50% of revenues in European casinos as compared to about 5% in U.S. casinos. Casinos today in Atlantic City, do offer En Prison for even money bets on their double zero wheels. This effectively reduces the casinos' edge from 5.26% to 2.63% for those bets.

Roulette did enjoy popularity stateside around the turn of the century up until World War II. As Americans learned to lose less at craps and subsequently became interested in the notion that black jack was beatable, roulette declined in popularity. Roulette is the oldest casino game still in existence. I believe that with the emergence of more single zero wheels in the United States, and a well informed gambling public, the game may enjoy a resurgence in popularity

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