Explaining the Roulette Wheel

There are two basic types of roulette wheels.  The first type is the oldest and is commonly known as the European roulette wheel.  This roulette wheel has thirty seven numbers on it that are numbered from zero to thirty six.  When playing a European roulette wheel, the house has less of an edge.

The American roulette wheel has thirty eight with the added addition of the double zero.  The double zero increases the house odds and is not a favorite with high roller roulette players as they see the house odds as being a downside to this type of roulette wheel.  They prefer to play on a roulette wheel that has only the zero.

Whether playing on an American or European roulette wheel, the wheel must be kept constantly spinning by the croupier, even when bets are being placed.  Many think that the wheel stops when the number falls into a number.  This is not true; the wheel will still be spinning as the croupier removes the ball to spin the ball again.

Once the winning number has been announced, the croupier will put a marker on the winning number and the players can not place another wager until the croupier removes the marker. 

The entire time this is all happening, the roulette wheel is still spinning.  To get the next winning number, the croupier will spin the ball in the opposite direction of the spin of the roulette wheel which enables the ball to fall into the slot that determines the winning number.