There are many ways of placing a bet and the Asian Handicap option means that the draw is removed and only two outcomes remain.
What Makes Asian Handicap Betting Different?
Asian Handicap betting is a form of handicap betting, mainly used in football, which removes the possibility of a draw from the outcome.
It works in a similar way to conventional handicap betting – giving a team a virtual start to effectively level the playing field – but also allows players to split bets by increasing the increments.
Why Asian Handicap? Simple really – it originated in Asia but has quickly spread around the world into a hugely popular bet.
How Asian Handicap Betting Works
The idea of Asian Handicap betting is to offer a bet that removes the draw, reducing the match to two outcomes (win or lose), by giving one team a virtual head start.
For example, Team A is the favourite for a game and short odds in a fixed-odds betting market. By giving Team A an Asian Handicap of -1.5 (effectively subtracting 1.5 goals from their final score) they would have to win by at least two goals for a bet on them to pay out, but at far more favourable odds.
Asian Handicaps also introduce us to split or quarter-point handicaps. For example, Team A above might be given an Asian Handicap of -1.25 which means the bettor’s stake is split evenly between -1 and -1.5. If your team wins by two goals or more the bet wins; if your team wins by one goal, you lose the -1.5 part of the bet but get a refund on the -1 element.
Common Handicap Lines Explained
Here are the common types of Asian Handicap bets.
- 0.0 handicap = Otherwise known as Draw no bet. If you place a bet on a team with a 0.0 handicap, you win if your team wins. If the match ends in a draw, your stake is refunded.
- -0.5 = Team must win – by any score – for the bet to land.
- +0.5 = Team must avoid defeat (ie win or draw) to win the bet.
- -1.0 = With a -1.0 handicap, the team must win by more than one goal. If they win by exactly one goal, your stake is refunded.
- -1.5 = In this instance, if you are betting a team with a -1.5 handicap they must win by two goals or more.
- The quarter-point or split handicap gives bettors even more to consider.
- -0.25 = A bet on a team with a -0.25 handicap means splitting the stakes to the half-point either side of that value, so half the stake is bet on 0, half on -0.5.
- +1.75 = In this instance, half the stake is placed on +1.5, the other half on +2.0.
Real Match Example
If you back Liverpool for £20 to beat Fulham with a handicap of -1.25, then you have two separate £10 bets at Liverpool -1 and Liverpool -1.5.
If they win by 2 goals or more, both bets win; if they win by one goal the -1.5 part of the bet loses and the other half (-1) is refunded.
If Liverpool draw or lose, then both parts of the bet lose.
Conversely, in the same match you might want to bet £20 on Fulham, the underdog, with a +1.25 handicap. Again, you have two separate £10 bets, this time at Fulham +1 and Fulham +1.5. So you are effectively adding 1.25 goals to their final actual score.
If Fulham win the match you win, if they draw you win, if they lose by one goal, half your bet (the +1.5 part) wins, the other part (+1) is refunded.
Pros and Cons of Asian Handicap Betting
Pros:
- Real football students are often rewarded for forensic conclusions to a match
- By eliminating the draw it keeps betting to a simple win-or-lose scenario
- The accommodation of partial wins and refunds on bets offers welcome safety nets for many bettors
Cons:
- There is a degree of complexity, especially with the split-bet element
- Harder to find in some UK-facing markets, and on sites where football markets are less prominent
- With margin of victory (or defeat) often as important as simply win or lose, more research on teams may be required before placing bets