Along with the variety of inside and outside bets, in European roulette, there are a number of traditional bets on a combination of numbers, which are located in specific sectors of the roulette wheel. More often these bets are referred to as ”Call Bets”, but if we are striving to be more accurate, we may label them ”Announced Bets”.
There is a legal distinction between call bets and announced bets.
A call bet actually represents a bet called by any player without him/her placing any money on the roulette table in order to cover the bet's cost.
In some parts of the world, but particularly in the United Kingdom, these bets are considered to belong to the so-called ”gambling on credit” category, which is not legal in a number of jurisdictions across the globe. On the other hand, an announced bet is a bet called by any player, while its cost is immediately covered by the player before the outcome of the spin in progress becomes known.
Each particular combination of numbers has its own name and covers a specific section of the roulette wheel. Participants may place bets on a set amount per combination, or on multiples of this amount. These combinations depend on the way particular numbers are located next to each other on the wheel. Several combinations of numbers are to be pointed out.
Neighbors of zero (or ”Les voisins du zéro”)
There is a more accurate name for this bet, Grand Voisins du Zéro. It features the 17 numbers located between 22 and 25 on the single-zero wheel, with the inclusion of the two. The number series is as follows: 0, 2, 19, 21, 22, 25, 3, 4, 26, 28, 29, 32, 35, 7, 12, 15, 18.
The following bets, using 9 chips, can be placed: 2 chips as a split bet at the intersection of the 0, 2 and 3; 5 chips as split bets between 4 and 7, 12 and 15, 18 and 21, 19 and 22, 32 and 35; 2 chips as a corner bet on the 25, 26, 28 and 29.
Thirds of the wheel (or ”Le tiers du cylindre”)
This name refers to a bet, which features the 12 numbers located on the opposite side of the single-zero wheel between 33 and 27, with the inclusion of the two. The number series is as follows: 27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10, 5, 24, 16, 33. This bet is far more popular than the ”Neighbors of zero” bet, for instance, at casinos in the United Kingdom.
Six chips are usually used in the form of 6 split bets as follows: 1 split between 5 and 8; 1 split between 10 and 11; 1 split between 13 and 16; 1 split between 23 and 24; 1 split between 27 and 30; 1 split between 33 and 36.
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”Les orphelins” (or Orphans)
This bet features numbers, which belong neither to the ”thirds of the wheel”, nor to the ”neighbors of zero”. In this case, we have 8 numbers, which comprise two sections of the wheel – the first (17, 34, 6) and the second (1, 20, 14, 31, 9).
Five chips are usually placed as follows: 1 chip as a straight-up bet on 1; 1 chip as a split between 6 and 9; 1 chip as a split between 14 and 17; 1 chip as a split between 17 and 20; 1 chip as a split between 31 and 34.
Zero game (or ”Jeu zéro”, ”Zero Spiel”)
This bet is quite popular in Germany as well as in other European casinos. It features the numbers, which are closest to 0. All numbers in the “zero game” are featured in the bigger series (”neighbors of zero”), but are placed in a different manner. The number series is as follows: 12, 35, 3, 26, 0, 32, 15.
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Four chips are usually placed as follows: 1 chip as a split between 0 and 3; 1 chip as a split between 12 and 15; 1 chip as a straight-up bet on 26; 1 chip as a split between 32 and 35.
Final digits (or ”Les finales”)
These bets are most often pronounced as “finaal”, “finale”, or “finals”. Players may choose between two bet variations:
1. Straight (”En plein”). In this case, a player may bet on numbers, which end with one and the same digit. For numbers ending in 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, he or she will need four chips, while for numbers ending in 7, 8 and 9 – 3 chips. It is so because only three numbers having 7, 8, or 9 as final digits are present on the European roulette wheel. Let us clarify.
A bet on digit 4 requires four chips, with each one of them being placed on every number ending in 4. On the wheel we have 4, 14, 24 and 34.
A bet on digit 8 requires three chips, with each one of them being placed on every number ending in 8. On the wheel, we have 8, 18 and 28.
2. Split (”A cheval”). In this case, a player may bet on pairs of numbers, which end with one and the same digit. For the pairs 0-1, 1-2, 2-3, 4-5 and 5-6, he/she will need 5 chips. For the pairs 0-3, 1-4, 2-5, 3-6, 7-8 and 8-9, the player will need 4 chips, while for the pairs 4-7, 5-8, 6-9, 7-10, 8-11 and 9-12 – 3 chips. Let us explain.
A bet on pair 5-8 requires three chips, with each one of them being placed on 5-8, 15-18 and 25-28.
Single-zero ”European Rules” in the United States
At some casinos located in the United States, players can find single-zero roulette wheels. When playing on such, in case the ball drops into the 0 pocket, players are allowed to get back 50% of their wagers. This rule, which is applied to even-money bets only, reduces the advantage of the house to 2.7%.
In Las Vegas, such casinos are The Tropicana, The Luxor, The Monte Carlo, The Stratosphere, The Aladdin, Nevada Palace and The Mandalay Bay.
In Atlanta City, such casinos include The A.C. Hilton, Caesar's, Borgata, Bally's, Taj, Harrah's, Sand's, Trump Marina and the Tropicana
The majority of the single wheels are located in areas, where there is a concentration of high-rollers (big-money bettors), with the minimum bet being around $100 and above.
