Roulette has been a very popular table game since the 18th century, although roulette had several predecessors that were popular prior to that. The version that we know and love today was devised in France during 1796. One of the earliest recounts of roulette can be read in an old French novel titled La Roulette. Roulette was originally developed with two zero slots that gave the casino a mathematical advantage, however as casinos began competing for market share versions of the game were made to include only one zero.

The game became so popular that it was banned in Quebec halfway through the 18th century. Roulette wheels with a single zero were developed in the mid 19th century in order to compete with other casinos. One casino would have wheels with a single zero and would lose some of their mathematical edge but would attract enough players to make up any lost returns. Roulette now favored the player more than ever roulette continued to flourish resulting in its ban in several countries.

Roulette became even more popular once American gambling dens started to offer it. The game was extremely popular in several gambling dens across the territories. The change from two zeroes to one zero never caught on in America and to this day most American roulette tables have two zeroes. Because of the rugged and untamed nature of America at that time cheating was widespread by both players and dealers alike. This lead to many innovations that simplified betting and in the display of the wheel in order to ensure players that no trickery would occur at any given establishment.

Roulette has remained a popular game and has only gotten more popular with the development of the internet. These days online roulette can be played at anytime from anywhere.