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Asian Handicap Betting

In this article:

Asian handicap meaning
Asian handicap in football betting
Example of Asian handicap
How to place Asian handicaps

Asian handicap meaning

Handicaps are betting markets that are designed to give an underdog a virtual head start.

Originating in Asia, these markets are designed to make a game or event more even and less one sided. For example, a two-goal (+2.0) handicap may be given to the underdog in a football fixture giving them a virtual head start.

A minus symbol (-) is given to the favourite team giving them a disadvantage and a plus symbol (+) is given to the underdogs, giving them a virtual advantage.

All reputable online bookmakers offer Asian handicap markets to their customers so there’s plenty of opportunity to profit from these markets.

With Asian handicap betting, there are only two possible outcomes. In the event of a draw, your bet is refunded. This is essentially a push scenario where neither you (the bettor) nor the bookmaker win the bet.

Asian handicaps in football betting

Handicaps are typically used in football betting as it’s easy to give a goal advantage to one team. There are other sports where you’ll find Asian handicaps but soccer is the most common.

Asian handicap example

This may be a difficult concept for any beginners to understand so here’s an example to help explain.

Asian handicap +2.5

Liverpool (-2.5) vs Southampton (+2.5)

Let’s say that you want to bet on a football match between Liverpool and Southampton. In the Asian handicap line above, Southampton have a 2.5 goal advantage.

If you’re betting on Liverpool -2.5, they’d need to score at least three more goals than Southampton to win the bet.

So if you bet on a Liverpool win and the final score was 2-1 to Liverpool, your bet would lose as Southampton had a 2.5 goal advantage. If the score was 3-0 to Liverpool, your bet would win.

If you’re betting on Southampton +2.5, you win the bet if Liverpool fail to win by more than three goals or Southampton win or draw the match.

A draw is not possible in half goal handicaps.

Two-way handicaps

You can also bet on two-way handicaps which are a little more complicated. This splits your stake into two. Half of your bet is wagered on one handicap and the other is wagered on a slightly higher handicap.

Here’s an example: Southampton +2.0, +2.5.

Half your bet goes to the +2.0 handicap and the other half goes to the +2.5 handicap.

If the fixture ends up as 2-0 to Liverpool, half your bet would be refunded due to a draw and the other half would win thanks to the +2.5 handicap part.

With the two-way handicap there’s more potential for you to win part of the bet. It’s very similar to an each-way bet.

How to place an Asian handicap bet

Placing Asian handicap bets is incredibly easy in the modern world of online gambling. There’s no difference between placing a Win/Draw/Win bet and an Asian handicap bet.

Simply head to your desired bookmaker and find the football fixture you want to place your bets on. Then scroll down to find the Asian handicap market.

Now it’s time to select which Asian handicap line you want to bet on. There’s plenty of different handicaps available for each team as you can see in the screenshot below.

Once you’ve selected your market, it’s time to place your bet.

Asian handicap betting

Check out this article for more information on Asian handicap betting.