Casino roulette is a popular gambling game played in casinos worldwide.
It involves a spinning wheel with numbered pockets and a small ball. Players place bets on where they think the ball will land, and if they predict correctly, they win.
Here are the basic rules of roulette:
- The Wheel: A standard roulette wheel has 37 (European/French roulette) or 38 (American roulette) numbered pockets, alternately colored in red and black. The numbers are from 1 to 36, with either one zero (European/French) or two zeros (American).
- The Table Layout: The betting area on the roulette table consists of two main sections: inside bets and outside bets. Inside bets involve betting on specific numbers or groups of numbers, while outside bets involve betting on broader categories like colors, odd/even numbers, or ranges of numbers.
- Placing Bets: Players place their bets by placing chips on the corresponding areas of the roulette table. They can place multiple bets on different numbers or combinations of numbers.
- The Spin: Once all bets are placed, the dealer (or in online roulette, the virtual dealer) spins the wheel in one direction and then spins a small ball in the opposite direction around the rim of the wheel.
- Determining the Outcome: The outcome of the game is determined by where the ball comes to rest in one of the numbered pockets on the wheel after it loses momentum. The winning number is announced, and all winning bets are paid out accordingly.
- Winning and Losing: If the outcome matches any of the player’s bets, they win according to the payout odds for that particular bet. If the outcome does not match any of their bets, they lose the amount wagered.
- Zero and Double Zero: In European/French roulette, there’s one zero pocket (labeled as “0”), while in American roulette, there are two zero pockets (“0” and “00”). These zero pockets give the house its edge. If the ball lands on zero (or double zero), all outside bets lose, unless the player specifically bet on zero.
- Special Bets: Some roulette variants offer special bets like neighbor bets (betting on a number and its neighbors on the wheel), Voisins du Zéro (betting on a specific series of numbers), or Orphelins (betting on certain numbers not covered by other bets). These bets are usually found in French roulette.
These are the fundamental rules of roulette. However, there may be variations in rules and betting options depending on the specific variant of roulette being played.