Handicap betting is when a team are given a ‘virtual disadvantage’ in order to make it a more level playing field. The bet is therefore won if the team overcomes this deficit after the handicap has been placed. This is used in a variety of sports, including football.
Please note that all information provided is for educational purposes only and does not guarantee any financial returns. Additionally, you should only engage in handicap betting if you fully understand the process and the associated risks that come with it. To see more, visit our betting guide page.
What is Handicap Betting?
Handicap betting is a strategy designed to level the playing field between two unevenly matched teams or players. In this type of bet, one team is given a ‘handicap’, either positive or negative, to make the odds more competitive. For example, a stronger team might start with a -1 goal disadvantage, while the weaker team is given a +1 goal advantage, to make the game closer on the betting market. This balances the odds, making it widely used in football and across other sports, and it is a legal and risk-free strategy to take advantage of betting offers.
How Does Handicap Betting Work?
Handicap betting works by giving one team a virtual advantage or disadvantage to make the match more balanced.
Example:
Doncaster Rovers (-2) 1/2
Handicap Tie (-1) 2/1
Carlisle United (+2) 3/1
In this case, the stronger side, Doncaster Rovers, are given a -2 goal handicap, so they needed to win by more than 2 goals for the bet to come in. Carlisle are the weaker side, and are given a +2 handicap, so if they win, draw or lose by 2 goals, then the bet will be successful. Doing so makes putting money on Carlisle more likely to be successful as the odds are more in their favour.
Types of Handicap Bets
There are various types of handicap bets, each offering unique strategies and outcomes. This section will take a look at the different options available, including Asian and European handicap betting.
Single Handicap Betting
Single handicap betting involves applying a single-goal advantage or disadvantage to one team, as the name suggests. For example, if Leeds United (the stronger team) faces Plymouth Argyle (the underdog), Leeds would start with a -1 handicap. To win the bet, Leeds must win by more than one goal. Alternatively, Plymouth with a +1 handicap will win the bet if they win, draw, or lose by just one goal. This makes the match more balanced for betting.
Asian Handicap Betting
Asian Handicap betting is a more cut-and-dry form of handicap betting, eliminating the possibility of a draw. This means the outcome is only win or lose, which is more favourable for people who have greater experience in betting, as they prefer the certainty.
Examples:
-0.5 Handicap: A team with a -0.5 handicap must win the match for the bet to succeed. If they draw or lose, the bet loses.
+1.5 Handicap: The underdog with a +1.5 handicap can lose by 1 goal, draw, or win, and the bet is successful. Losing by 2 or more goals sees the bet lose.
-1 Handicap: If a team with a -1 handicap wins by exactly 1 goal, the stake is refunded. Winning by 2 or more goals means the bet wins.
This type of betting means the odds are better, which is why experienced punters prefer this as they use their prior knowledge.
European Handicap Betting
European Handicap betting is almost identical to Asian Handicap, but the key difference is that the possibility of a draw is introduced. This adds another betting option, which is why it is preferred by certain punters.
In this system, one team is given a goal advantage or disadvantage, and the bet can end in a draw if the final result matches the handicap precisely.
Key Difference: The Asian Handicap has no draws, whereas the European Handicap does all for a game to be level. This allows for a third outcome to be introduced into the equation.
Example:
| Team | Handicap | Result |
| Birmingham | -1 | Birmingham can win by more than two goals |
| Cambridge | +1 | Cambridge can win, draw or lose by one goal. |
| Draw | N/A | If Birmingham win by exactly 1 goal, the bet is a draw. |
With a European Handicap, if the result matches the handicap exactly (E.g. if Birmingham win by 2 goals with a -2 handicap), then the bet is a draw, and the original stake is refunded.
Best Handicap Betting Sites
When it comes to handicap betting, choosing the right platform is always important, like with putting money on any sport. There are the likes of Betiton and Bet442 that are mainstream betting sides, making them reputable. They also have more comprehensive markets, and along with in-depth statistics, this helps them to move ahead of their rivals. Other features include in-play live betting and responsive customer support, which helps to enhance the overall betting experience. By selecting a trusted site, bettors are more likely to enjoy their experience, as it is efficient and more transparent. Here are the best handicap betting sites in the UK.
Best Handicap Betting Site: Betiton
Betiton stands out as one of the best handicap betting sites because it offers extensive coverage across various sports and leagues. This includes, but is not limited to, football, basketball, and tennis. Attractive promotions help to give them the edge in a compact market, and they also have a user-friendly interface to provide a seamless betting experience. But it is their regular bonuses and promotions that make it an ideal platform for both beginners and experienced bettors. Betiton therefore excels in their balanced mix of being reliable to all, but also having good value in their odds.
Best Asian Handicap Betting Site: Rhino.Bet
In terms of Asian Handicap Betting, Rhino.Bet is a top choice. They stand out for their focus on Asian Handicap, also providing clear options and valuable promotions for bettors. In terms of their website, it is user-friendly and has excellent customer support to ensure a smooth experience. Their focus on this market makes them stand out from the crowd, and if you sign up, then there may be some potential promotions to take advantage of.
Best European Handicap Betting Site: Highbet
Highbet, meanwhile, specialise in European Handicap betting. They offer extensive coverage of football and tennis, along with other major sports. Their competitive odds, combined with generous promotions and bonuses, help to make it a top platform for bettors. In terms of the European Handicap market, they provide clear and attractive options. In comparison to other brands, Highbet’s reliability and tailored promotions enhance the betting experience. By signing up, exclusive offers can be awarded.
Best Handicap Betting App: Bet442
For a go-to betting app for Handicap Betting, Bet442 is the place. They offer extensive coverage across sports like football, tennis, and basketball. With competitive odds and a variety of betting options, Bet442 stands out for its seamless mobile experience. Regular promotions and bonuses also set them apart, giving the punters a great chance to profit. Its focus on accessibility and value sets it apart from the competition, which is always important in this industry.
Examples of Handicap Betting in Football
In the EFL, handicap betting can provide more balanced odds when a heavily favoured team faces an underdog. For example, in League Two this season, this might look like a game between leaders Walsall and bottom side Carlisle United. Walsall would be given a -1.5 handicap, while Carlisle would receive a +1.5 advantage.
- Walsall -1.5: To win the bet, Walsall must win by 2 or more goals. If they win by exactly 1 goal, the bet loses, as with any other result.
- Carlisle United +1.5: Carlisle will win the bet if they win or draw, or if they lose by a single goal.
The reason for this is to balance the odds, as the favoured side will offer lower returns, but improved on normal betting. While backing the underdog gives greater potential for the bet to be successful due to the numerous stipulations. This helps to create a fairer and more strategic betting environment.
Understanding Handicap Betting Odds
Handicap betting odds are calculated by adjusting the goal difference to level the playing field between teams that have unequal strength, on paper at least. Traditional odds reflect just the outcome of the game, while handicap odds factor in a goal advantage or disadvantage. If you’re backing the favourite with a -2 handicap, they must win by more than 2 goals for the bet to succeed. Meanwhile, a handicap of +2 for the underdog gives them a two goal advantage, so they can win, draw, or lose by one or two goals for the bet to win.
Handicap Betting Tips
Handicap betting can be a powerful strategy if used correctly. To maximise your chances of success, it’s essential to understand key tactics and insights. In the next section, some tips will be provided to increase your chances of success.
Analysing Team Form and Data
This is a very important part. Looking at the team form can provide a great insight into which team to put the bet on. Past encounters aren’t particularly useful as its bygone history, but can be of a small significance. If the top team are in poor form, then this influences the decision. Injuries also play a part in making informed bets.
Focus on Home and Away Records
A club’s home record is always considered the place where they are expected to pick up most of their points, due to the ‘home crowd’ advantage. An underdog away from home at a strong home side will be expected to lose, meaning that this could be an ideal situation to put a handicap on this bet. Away teams typically perform worse due to unfamiliar surroundings, but always check this and bear it in mind.
Adapting Handicap Lines for Live Betting
Play betting is very popular, because the ever-changing market during a game makes it much easier to put a bet on. If a team score, are awarded a red card, or have a key player go off injured, these factors can all influence the betting market. It is very dynamic and can be extremely quick to change, so you have to be very fast!
Betting on Underdogs
Betting on the ‘underdog’ is an extremely popular thing to do in handicap betting. This is because it creates a level-playing field, and increases the chances of the bet being successful by a much greater amount. This is because giving them a +1 or +1.5 handicap means they can win, draw or lose narrowly and win the bet.
Benefits of Handicap Betting
There are many advantages of handicap betting, hence why it is so popular with punters. One of the main reasons for this is providing more balanced odds, but below, we go into greater detail on this matter.
Better Value Bets
Better value is placed on the favourites. In some cases, the higher-ranked side will have poor odds of being successful, so implementing a handicap on them means that more money can be made. You have to be careful with this, as it requires a very niche result to win, but it can be very popular.
Flexibility with Underdog Bets
In this case, the underdog actually has worse odds of winning. But, crucially, their odds are more favourable because the chances of success are increased massively. Most results would mean the bet is successful, such as a win, draw or even a loss by a very small margin, making the risk for this bet a lot lower.
Eliminating Draws in Asian Handicap
An Asian Handicap eliminates draws, and this can be beneficial to the punter. It is a much simpler market, meaning placing a bet is easier. The risk is reduced as there are only two outcomes rather than the usual three, meaning the odds are more competitive, and the value is therefore better with this way of betting.
Common Mistakes to Avoid in Handicap Betting
As with any betting, it can be great, but it is important to know the common mistakes. In the section below, we will go through these to make sure that you avoid this in your own bets.
Misunderstanding the Handicap Line
Knowing what the virtual disadvantage is a common mistake. If you bet on a -1 handicap, the team must win by more than one goal for it to be successful. Failing to understand this means that you may not know that a single goal win will be unsuccessful, losing the bet.
Ignoring Team Form and Statistics
Making sure to look at form and key statistics is a common pitfall by those who don’t. Betting on a big club based on their name alone can be a huge error, while ignoring their form and any injuries will reduce their chances of winning. This would make the favourite unlikely to cover the handicap; therefore, it is important to look at this information.
Overvaluing Favourites
Thinking that the favourites will always win is a common error. A favourite will have to slip up at some point, so you should be aware of this. As they are successful, they may play plenty of games and could be fatigued, leading to a poorer performance. Giving them a big handicap would, therefore, need consideration, and underdogs also perform well sometimes due to no pressure.
Handicap Betting FAQ’s
What does Handicap +1.5 mean?
A +1.5 handicap is usually applied to an underdog to give them an advantage, making it a level playing field. This means that if it was put on Bristol Rovers playing Birmingham City, then Rovers would win the bet if they won, drew or lost by a margin of one goal. If the deficit was more than two goals, then the bet would be lost.
What is a +2 handicap in betting?
Similar to above, and using the same example, Bristol Rovers would win this bet with a win, a draw and a two-goal loss. This is because the +2 handicap means that if they lose 3-1, the score is adjusted to 3-3, giving the punter a win. If it ended 4-1 in favour of Birmingham, then the bet is lost.
What does a minus 2 handicap mean?
On the flip side, a -2 handicap would typically be applied to the favourite. Again, using the same scenario above, the -2 handicap would be applied to Birmingham. In this scenario, though, Birmingham would only be able to win the bet by winning by more than a two-goal margin. If this isn’t the case, and the margin is only one or two goals, a draw or a loss, then the bet is unsuccessful.
How does betting handicap work?
Handicap betting is a very popular strategy that helps to level the field. A negative handicap would be applied to the favourite on paper, say the team at the top of the table, if they were playing a lower-ranked side. Whereas a positive handicap can be put on a team that is unlikely to win the game, therefore increasing its chances of being successful. Examples of this with different figures are shown above.
What is normal handicap betting?
Normal handicap betting is known as European handicap betting. In this type, only full integers are used (e.g. -1, -2, -3) as opposed to Asian handicap betting, which instead uses half points (e.g. -1.5, -2.5). There are also draws in normal handicap betting. That aside, the premise is the same: giving a higher-ranked team a virtual disadvantage, while the underdog is given an advantage to make the chances of their success higher.
What does handicap 0-1 mean in betting?
This type of handicap is used in Asian handicap betting, eliminating the possibility of a draw. One team are given a single-goal advantage, typically the favourite, while the other team involved remains unchanged. This works in a way that the team with the advantage would need to win by more than one goal for them to be successful. For the ‘0’ side, the one with no handicap applied, the score is the same as the real-life one. If the favourite wins by a single goal, then the stake may be refunded with certain bookmakers.
What does handicap mean in betting?
A handicap in betting is when an adjustment is made to the scoreline, to make the playing field fairer. The favourite is the team given a positive handicap, while the underdog or the least favourable team will be given a negative handicap. There are many such answers above that go into detail on the different types of handicaps that can be applied, in terms of what the numbers mean.
What is the handicap betting strategy?
The handicap betting strategy utilises all the above information to put a bet on. This is done by looking at the form of the teams and by using handicaps on certain games, such as for the better team at the top and bottom end of the table. Certain strategies can be used, such as betting on the underdog when the favourite goes infront in a game, in order to get better odds. All this added together makes for a successful strategy.
How to bet 3-way handicap?
A 3-way handicap is like normal betting, in the respect that there are three options, but this isn’t common in handicap betting. The point of it is to usually eliminate the possibility of a draw, giving two outcomes- win or loss. But 3-way re-introduces the possibility of drawing. While the other two ways of winning have already been explained, the way a draw would win would be if a team with a positive handicap of one was applied to the underdog, and they lost 2-1. With the handicap applied, the score is now 2-2, meaning it ends in a draw, and the bet would win.
What is Handicap Betting?
Handicap betting gives an underdog a virtual advantage, or the favourite a virtual disadvantage, to level the playing field. This is why it is so popular, because it makes it more competitive, and more fun too. Betting on a favourite all the time feels easy, so adding a handicap adds some challenge into it, and means that the odds are better. The same goes with an underdog; giving them a positive handicap increases their chances of winning by a big margin.
How does Handicap betting work?
Handicap betting works very simply. The team who are considered the favourite are ‘given’ a goal or multiple advantages, so that when the result on the field comes in, then they have a much greater chance of being the winner. This works in the reverse way with the favourite, then have goals ‘taken away’ from them, meaning that they have to win by a greater margin than the amount than the handicap they have imposed on them.