The European Wheel (also known as the French wheel) is a popular type of roulette wheel in casinos in online gambling venues. This type of roulette wheel comes with 37 spaces, including slots from 1 to 36 and a “0” slot. This is in contrast with the American wheel, which has 37 spaces and includes both a “0” and a “00” slot.
European Wheel Vs. American Wheel Odds
When compared to the American wheel, which is what you will find in most casinos, the French/European roulette wheel is seen as being fairer towards the players. As can be seen from the table below, when making the same bet, the European wheel offers the player a higher odds of winning, which translates to a house edge that is 2x smaller:
European Wheel | American Wheel | ||||
Wager | Payoff | Odds of Winning | House Edge | Odds of Winning | House Edge |
Reds / Blacks | 1 to 1 | 48.65% | 2.7% | 47.37% | 5.26% |
Evens / Odds | 1 to 1 | 48.65% | 2.7% | 47.37% | 5.26% |
Low / High | 1 to 1 | 48.65% | 2.7% | 47.37% | 5.26% |
Dozens | 2 to 1 | 32.43% | 2.7% | 31.58% | 5.26% |
Columns | 2 to 1 | 32.43% | 2.7% | 31.58% | 5.26% |
6 line | 5 to 1 | 16.22% | 2.7% | 15.79% | 5.26% |
Topline | 6 to 1 | X | X | 13.16% | 7.89% |
Square | 8 to 1 | 10.81% | 2.7% | 10.53% | 5.26% |
Street | 11 to 1 | 8.11% | 2.7% | 7.89% | 5.26% |
Split | 17 to 1 | 5.41% | 2.7% | 5.26% | 5.26% |
Straight | 35 to 1 | 2.70% | 2.7% | 2.63% | 5.26% |
In addition to better odds, European wheel games also have a slightly different, more player-friendly ruleset. One example of this is the En Prison rule, which is triggered when the ball lands on a “0”.
This makes European wheel roulette one of the fairer casino games you can play, alongside baccarat, blackjack, and full-pay video poker.
European wheel:
- A popular type of roulette wheel that comes with 37 spaces.
- It has slots from 1 to 36 and a “0” slot.
- Is played with a slightly different ruleset.
- Seen as being fairer than the American roulette wheel.
