American Roulette is one of the three standard variants alongside European and French and essentially differs from the others only by the additional double zero, which doubles the house edge of the game. In the true sense, American roulette was the original variant, because the game was invented in the 17th century with 38 numbers and only later was the double zero removed to reduce the house edge. But where are the exact differences? This page is intended to inform you about this.
The additional double zero
As probably everyone knows, the real difference is the additional double zero, which is not available in the other standard variants. Accordingly, the tableau looks a little different, at the top of the field of use there is now not only zero, but the area is now divided between zero and double zero – the zero on the left above the 1 and 2 and the double zero on the 2 and 3.
This results in a couple of new uses. While only the combinations 0.1.2.3 – 0.1.2 and 0.2.3 were possible for the European variants , you can now use the combinations 0.00.1.2.3 – 0.1 , 2 – 00.2.3 or 0.00.2.
Completely different order of numbers in the boiler
One might think that the kettle for American roulette would be the same as that of European roulette, only the double zero was added somewhere opposite the zero. In fact, the order of the numbers is completely different from the European game. In contrast to the variant with 37 numbers, which are apparently randomly distributed, the numbers in the American boiler are distributed somewhat more orderly.
Here, adjacent pairs of numbers are always in the boiler directly opposite 0 and 00, 1 and 2, 3 and 4 etc. The 1 is to the left of the double zero and all 4 fields to the left are the odd number of the next pair of numbers 3, 5, 7 and 9 until you get to zero. All other pairs of numbers are distributed in the boiler in a similar way, but not all of them follow a uniform pattern. For example, to the left of the red 1 with the black odd numbers at intervals of four subjects: 13, 15 and 17, but then comes the 11 and four spaces further, the last black number before the zero is the even 28.
Because of this supposedly cleaner order and even distribution of numbers, some system players prefer American Roulette, but this is a fallacy that does not improve earnings expectations.
Payout rates and expected profit
The payout rates do not change overall, which leads to a greater house edge (5.26%) for the casino or a lower profit expectation (94.34%) for the player due to the double zero. There are also no differences in the new application options with zero and double zero. All combinations with 3 numbers are paid 11: 1, with four numbers you get 8: 1 as usual.
| bet | cover | payout | winning percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight up bet | 1 number | 35: 1 | 2.6% |
| Split bet | 2 numbers | 17: 1 | 5.3% |
| Street bet, First Three | 3 numbers | 11: 1 | 7.9% |
| Corner, First Four | 4 numbers | 8: 1 | 10.5% |
| First five | 5 numbers | 6: 1 | 13.2% |
| Line bet | 6 numbers | 5: 1 | 15.8% |
| Dozen, Column | 12 numbers | 2: 1 | 31.6% |
| Simple chances | 18 numbers | 1: 1 | 47.4% |
New, however, is the possibility to bet on 5 numbers (first transverse row with both zeros), there you get a payout of 6: 1. However, this bet is the only one that does not have the house edge of 5.26%, but with 7.89% an even more disadvantageous one for the player. The problem is that you cannot increase the payout to 7: 1, as this would result in a situation with a positive expected value (over 105.26%) for the player. Even with 6.5%, the house edge of the casino with 1.32% is only very small. In addition, “half numbers” are less advantageous for calculating a payout, since “small change” would have to be paid in odd bets.
Smaller tables and faster game speed
The myth of the “greedy” American casino owner is still persistent – somewhere rightly, but for the wrong reasons. The Americans did not invent the double zero to increase the house edge, the double zero was removed in Europe to become more competitive with a lower house edge.
What the Americans have changed is the game table itself and the flow of the game . The table has been reduced a bit so that the players can place their bets alone without announcement. This serves to accelerate the game flow. The deployment phase was also shortened slightly in order to be able to achieve more coups per hour. However, these measures only apply to real casinos, such adjustments are not necessary in online casinos and are therefore not available.