Where Did Roulette Come From?

Roulette is a game of chance that involves spinning a wheel and betting on what number or section the ball will land in. The table has specific areas for different bet types.

It’s important for players to understand the odds of each bet type before laying their chips down. This will help them make smart decisions and improve their chances of winning.

Origins

There is no consensus on exactly where the game of roulette originated. Some historians believe that it was invented by the French mathematician Blaise Pascal as part of his attempt to create a perpetual motion machine. Others think that the game evolved from a number of similar games, including the English game of Even-Odd and a game from Italy called Biribi.

What is known is that the game made its way to America with European immigrants. There, it evolved into the American version of roullete, which is still played today. The basic game consists of a wheel like the one pictured to the right that has 38 (or 37 on modern European/Latin American tables) pockets and a ball that rolls until it stops in one of them. People place bets on the outcome of the roll by placing chips on a betting mat.