Asian Handicap Explained

What Is an Asian Handicap?

A bet first introduced in Indonesia, an Asian handicap is a form of betting where teams are handicapped according to their state. For example, a stronger team might be handicapped with goals and win by more goals for a bettor to win his bet. The Asian handicap bet became globally popular at the beginning of the 21st century and is still hot today.

It’s a form of spread betting that reduces the number of possible outcomes in a match from 3 to 2. The draw is eliminated from Asian handicaps, leaving you only 2 options – a home or away win. Both have a nearly 50% chance of success, making the Asian handicap a huge hit at bookies such as SBOBet, Betfair, and Bet365.

How Asian Handicap Works

As we all know, there are great contests in sports. Everyone knows it will be a tight contest whenever Barcelona and Real Madrid take the field. However, when Barca plays Huesca, the difference in quality is obvious. In this case, football bookies give the favorite tiny odds that aren’t worth betting on.

To strike a better balance between teams with considerable differences in quality, the industry has developed the Asian handicap spread. It roughly follows the 1×2 match betting model and is similar to regular handicapping. The bet works with lines that can be full (1), half-lines (0.5), or quarter lines (0.25). According to the Asian handicap chart, these lines can eliminate or bring drawbacks into action.

Asian Handicap 0.0

The most common and easy-to-understand Asian handicap soccer line is 0.0. In this case, teams are not handicapped, and you win if you bet on the team that wins the match with any goal margin. The draw is still eliminated from the equation – if the game ends in one, the bet is void, and the stake is refunded.

Asian Handicap 0.25

With an Asian handicap of 0.25 (quarter line), a team is given a 1/4 head start. If it’s a -0.25 handicap, teams winning by any score bring a profit to the bettor. Half the best is refunded in a draw, while the other half loses.

If it’s a +0.25 handicap, wins by any score bring profit. Half the stake is settled at the starting price in case of a draw, and the other half is refunded.

Losses in both cases automatically result in a loss for the bettor.

Asian Handicap 0.5

With this bet, international betting websites are giving a team half a goal of advantage. If you bet on a team with a -0.5 advantage, a team winning by any score will make you a winner. In case of a draw, all selections lose.

If the Asian handicap odds are positive (+0.5), winning by any margin makes you a winner, just like a bet on a draw.

Asian Handicap 0.75

When a team has been given a handicap of -0.75, it needs to win by 2 goals or more for your selection to win. Drawing or losing by any margin means you lose your bet. If the team wins by 1 goal difference, half your stake is settled at the current odds while the other half is refunded.

If the odds are +0.75, your selection will win in case of a draw or win by any goal margin. If your pick loses by 1 goal, half of your stake is settled at the current price, while the other half is refunded. If the team draws or loses, your bet loses too.

Asian Handicap 1.0

The returns of full Asian handicaps bets are straightforward to calculate. If the team has been given a negative goal advantage of 1, it needs to win by 2 goals or more for your bet to win. If it loses or draws, you lose too. If it wins by 1 goal, the stake is void and refunded.

When the advantage is +1, your bet wins if the team wins by any goal margin or draws. If it loses by 2 or more, you lose. If it loses by 1 goal, your bet is void. In this case, you will get your stake back.

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Asian Handicap Examples

To put things into perspective, let’s see an example of an Asian handicap in play.

Let’s say it’s a La Liga match between Barcelona and Espanyol. It’s evident who the favorite is here in this city derby – Barcelona. The handicap, in this case, is -1 for Barcelona. Since the bigger Catalan team is the obvious favorite, the Asian handicap system handicaps the Blaugrana with a negative goal advantage, which means it needs to win with more than 2 goals for your bet to win.

Similarly, Espanyol may be handicapped with a +2 advantage, which means that it can lose with one goal, and your bet will still win. Since Barcelona is the stronger side, applying a handicap on its chances evens the playing field and allows punters to profit if the team performs to its abilities and wins by a nice goal margin.

What Is the Difference Between Handicap and Asian Handicap

While both types of bets are similar, key differences make them different. The best Asian handicap betting sites will have a guide for two kinds of bets. You won’t be confused about the difference between them and, hopefully, learn how to select the better one.

European handicap works best in one-sided matches. It works with full Asian handicap odds and doesn’t use quarters or half goals. It’s a great introduction to Asian handicap betting, so it works great for beginners.

On the other hand, Asian handicaps are a bit more complicated but more fun. They bring the drawback into action, with the bettor’s stake usually refunded in draws. Asian handicap has many more varieties than European, so it’s a matter of your personal preferences and betting style.

Advantages of Asian Handicap Betting

With the draw being eliminated from the equation, the Asian handicap gives bet enthusiasts plenty of advantages. It gives you a better chance of winning. Asian handicaps have more options than the European variant and higher odds.

Thanks to all this, bettors have much more flexibility when betting on Asian handicap bets. It is significantly important for many bettors looking to have many options at their disposal than just a few outcomes with European handicaps.

If you plan on using it on an accumulator, it’s best to use an Asian handicap betting strategy unless you want to lose your bearings in loads of options.

Which Sports Are Best for Asian Handicaps?

Asian handicaps are a form of spread betting, so they work great in various sports. However, these bets traditionally work great on football and are usually applied to it.

You can also apply it to golf, handball, and similar sports with a ball.