The maths behind gambling

YOUR FRIENDS who gamble may brag about their “wins,” but here’s the truth … no matter what type of gambling, in the long run, the gambler always loses.

- ATLEHA-EDU

Why the house always wins

But why does the house always win?

In every betting game, the odds are against the player. It all comes down to maths. You may win in the short term, but over time, the ‘house’, a.k.a. the betting establishment or operator, always wins.

The house always wins because they have a mathematical advantage over you, called the ‘house edge’. House edge is the difference between ‘true odds’ and ‘payout odds’. True odds are the likelihood of an event occurring.

According to the Responsible Gambling Council, in roulette, your real chance of winning is 1 in 38. However, if you do win, the casino only pays you as if your chance was 1 in 35. That small shortfall (38 vs. 35) is the ‘house edge’.

It means that you still win (now and then)—but over time, the casino always makes money, because it pays you a little less than what the fair odds would be.

So even when players hit a jackpot, over the long run, if they keep playing, the betting house comes out on top. Remember, betting houses are businesses, and that’s how they make their money.

A statistician’s curiosity
Editor’s practical example