Handicap Betting Guide

Kirill | 2016-08-27 |

Betting on Handicaps is often times referred to as spread betting. It has become a common way of betting on sports based on points scored. The most common sports for handicap betting are soccer, basketball, tennis, and American football.

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What is Handicap Betting?

Handicap betting is often times available when a bookmaker picks a match with two participating players or teams. In order to turn a rather uneven competition between, let’s say Italy and Malta, the bookmaker will try to provide an even money contest by giving an advantage to the weaker team or a disadvantage to the stronger team.

Italy taking on Malta? Time for a Handicap bet.

Let’s assume a bookmaker decides to give Malta a 3 goal virtual advantage right from the start. Italy would have to to score at least 4 goals and keep a clean sheet in order to win the game 4-0 and to cover the provided handicap.

Please be aware of the fact that the handicap provided applies only to the specific game. Additionally, there are almost unlimited numbers of possible handicaps a bookmaker can provide. You need to pay attention to the handicap number before placing your bets, because the handicap is almost always different.

What is Asian Handicap Betting?

Asian Handicap betting is a variant of the “classic” handicap betting. It was started and popularized in Asia.

During the past few decades, this special type of handicap betting has become a common form of betting on soccer games. The distinctive feature of Asian Handicaps can be found in its form of whole and half numbers. Contrary to the old fashioned handicap bets, this eliminates the chance of a draw.

Let’s take a look at our previous example:

If Italy won the game 3-0 in regulation against Malta, they would have not overcome the disadvantage of 3 goals. This means the final result, after applying the handicap, would be 3-3. If the bookmaker would have decided to provide a 3.5 Asian handicap instead, you would have lost your bet, because Italy would have lost its match 3-3.5 by half a goal.