Online roulette is hugely popular now. Please read on for a basic guide to this addictive game.

Early roulette in its basic form was first devised in France in the 17th century by the mathematician Blaise Pascal.

In 1842, fellow Frenchmen François and Louis Blanc added the "0" to the roulette wheel in order to increase house odds. It was introduced into the United States in the early 1800s, and again in order to increase house odds a second zero, "00", was created.

Roulette Basics:

A croupier turns a round roulette wheel which has 37 or 38 separately numbered pockets in which a ball must land.

The main pockets are numbered from 1 to 36 and alternate between red and black, with number 1 being red.

There is also a green pocket numbered 0. If a player bets on a single number and wins, the payout is 35 to 1.

The bet itself is returned, so in total it is multiplied by 36, players can also bet on numbers, combinations, ranges, odds/evens and colours.

There are currently two types of internet roulette, American roulette and European roulette, although the game remains almost the same, there are a few clear differences.

American roulette wheels contain 2 sets of "0's", one "0" and one "00" to increase the house advantage, European roulette wheels contain just the single "0".

Most European roulette tables are also much bigger than their American counterparts and the croupier uses a rake to clear chips and distribute winnings, in America this is done by hand.