Asian Handicap Betting

Betting on football is a much-liked pastime both for recreational and professional bettors all over the globe. While the focus of the first group is primarily on fun, and winnings are a welcome benefit, the second group usually targets consistent profits and sound risk management. Asian Handicap Bets are more commonly exploited by professional punters, but this does not mean that recreational bettors should not explore the advantages of this bet type as well.

Asian Handicap Betting Explained Most Common Asian Handicap Bets Types of Payouts Conclusion

As its name suggests, the strategy originated in Asia, and later, gained immense popularity in Europe and America at the beginning of the 21st century. It may seem a bit perplexing at first, but actually, it is not that complicated once bettors figure out the way it works. Many successful football punters owe their winnings to Asian Handicap betting strategy. It is worth the time and effort invested, as it adds value to markets and brings risk management to the next level.

Asian Handicapping is a form of betting that delivers a more balanced betting environment between two mismatched teams. The greater the disparity between the opponents is, the greater the handicap on the favorite will be.

Asian Handicap Betting Explained

In its essence, Handicap betting aims to make a sports contest more even, i.e. to level out both teams’ chances of winning. This is done by awarding the underdog a headstart and by handicapping the favorite to an extent equivalent to their abilities and current form. By applying a handicap, bookies offer better options to bettors, as well as greater value.

With Asian Handicap Betting, wagers on both teams stand equal chances of winning, as the possibility of the match ending in a draw is eliminated. Unlike conventional 3-way betting, where punters have a 33% chance of winning, this approach to betting increases the chances to 50%. In this respect, Asian Handicap Betting is less risky than European Handicap Betting. So, punters are ultimately supposed to decide if the weaker team will benefit from the virtual advantage it is awarded, or if the stronger team will be able to overcome the handicap.

The minus (-) symbol is used to denote the handicap for the favorite, while the plus (+) symbol indicates the headstart for the underdog. Let us now examine the Asian Handicap markets available for a football match from the UEFA Champions League, Atletico Madrid vs Manchester City.

Asian Handicap markets can be generally subdivided into three categories – full, half, and split handicaps. The full handicap markets consist of full numbers, meaning that the Draw is possible, and punters’ stakes are reimbursed in such cases. The half handicap markets use halves, which eliminates the possibility of a Draw.

Split Asian handicap markets are a mixture of full and half handicaps. They give punters the ability to split their stakes on a team over two handicaps. Examples of split handicap markets are +1.25, -1.25, +1.75, -1.75, etc. For these markets, two handicaps are combined to yield a single handicap. For instance, a +1.25 Asian Handicap is made up of +1 and +1.50 handicaps. A +1.75 Asian handicap consists of a +1.50 handicap and a +2 handicap.

If bettors decide to back Manchester City and choose the -1.25 Asian handicap, half of their stake is placed at -1, and half, at -1.50. If Manchester City ends the match in a draw or loses, bettors lose both of their stakes. If the team manages to win by two goals or more, both of the stakes will be successful. If Manchester City wins the match by a single goal, however, half of the stake will be reimbursed, and half will be lost.

Thus, if bettors stake €10 on -1.25 Asian Handicap market on Manchester City, and they win by two goals or more, at odds of 2.87, the potential return would be €28.70. We will later show how the returns of Asian handicap wagers are calculated, according to the outcome.

Besides markets based on the result of football matches, Asian Handicap betting can be applied to other bet types such as:

• Total goals
• Corner betting
• Card Betting

Furthermore, Asian handicaps can be applied both to full-time and half-time markets.

Most Common Asian Handicap Bets

We are now going to review the most common types of Asian handicap markets and what they indicate.

1. Asian Handicap 0.0

   This Asian Handicap betting market is virtually equivalent to the market Draw No Bet. It occurs in matches where the two opposing teams are evenly matched. In case the game ends in a draw stakes are reimbursed. Bettors win if their selected team wins the match.

2. Asian Handicap -0.25/+0.25

   Bettors who have placed a wager on the -0.25 Asian Handicap market, will win their wagers if their selected team wins the match. However, if the game ends in a draw, half of the stake is lost and half will be reimbursed.

   Punters who have decided to back a team awarded a +0.25 Asian Handicap, will win if the team wins. Games ending in a draw entail half-won and half-refunded stakes.

3. Asian Handicap -0.5/+0.5

   For an Asian Handicap of -0.5, your selected team needs to overcome a half goal lead, meaning that the bet wins if your team wins. The bet loses if the match ends in a draw or if the opponents win by scoring a single goal. Opting for the +0.5 Asian Handicap requires that the match either ends in a Draw or a win by a single goal for your selected team.

4. Asian Handicap -0.75/+0.75

   By selecting this type of Asian Handicap bet, punters are dividing their bet into two halves – -0.5 and -1 handicaps. They win both of these bets if their selected team wins the match by a minimum of two goals. If they win by a single goal, half of the stake will be reimbursed and the other half will be won.

   Bets placed on +0.75 Asian Handicap markets will win if the selected team either wins or draws the match. If they lose by 1 goal, half of the stake will be lost, and half will be reimbursed.

5. Asian Handicap -1/+1

   For your -1 Asian Handicap wager to be a winning one, your selected team should win by at least 2 goals. If they happen to win by a single goal, your stake will be reimbursed. The opposite +1 Asian Handicap market suggests that if the selected team loses by a single goal, the stake will be refunded.

6. Asian Handicap -1.25/+1.25

   As already pointed out in the example above, this is a split Asian Handicap Betting market. The stakes are split into two bets. For a -1.25 wager to be successful, the selected team should win by a minimum of 2 goals. If they end up winning by a single goal, bettors lose half of their stake. If bettors have chosen the +1.25 market, their bets will win, if the selected team either wins the match or draws it. If they lose by a single goal, half of the stake will be won and half will be refunded. If they lose by 2 or more goals, the whole stake is considered a losing one.

7. Asian Handicap -1.50/+1.50

   If you bet on a team that is handicapped by -1.5 goals, this means that your bet will win if this team wins the match by a minimum of 2 goals. If they win by a single goal, the whole stake will be lost. If you opt for the team that is awarded a headstart of +1.5 goals, the bet will win, if they either win, draw the match or lose by a single goal

8. Asian Handicap -1.75/+1.75

   With an Asian Handicap bet market of -1.75, the bet is split into -1.5 and -2.00 Asian Handicaps. If the selected team wins the match by at least 3 goals, the bet wins. If they win by two goals, half of the stake will be reimbursed and half will be won. If you choose to bet on an underdog that is awarded a headstart of +1.75, you lose the whole stake in case they lose by 2 or more goals. If they lose by exactly 2 goals, half of your investment will be refunded.

Types of Payouts from Asian Handicap Bets

Due to its nature, Asian Handicap betting allows for five types of possible outcomes, as far as stakes are concerned:

• Win
• Half win
• Push
• Half lose
• Lose

We will now explain how payouts are calculated as per all outcomes. In case of a winning Asian Handicap wager, payouts are calculated the same way as any standard wager. Bettors should simply multiply the amount of their stake by the offered odds (Decimal odds format).

As far as half-winning bets are concerned, half of the stake is multiplied by the odds, and half is reimbursed. Punters can calculate their payouts by using the following formula:

Payout = ((STAKE / 2 * ODDS) + (STAKE / 2)

Let us assume that we have staked €20 on an Asian handicap betting market with odds of 2.00. These would be our calculations to figure out a half-winning wager:

((20 / 2 * 2.00)+ (20/2)= €30

The whole stake of a bettor is returned in case of a push. As far as half-losing stakes are concerned, bettors lose half of their stake and the other half gets reimbursed. And, finally, with losing stakes, punters lose the whole invested sum of money.

Conclusion

Although Asian Handicap Betting opportunities provide excellent chances for bettors to find value in markets and maximize their betting bankrolls, they are advised to start with smaller stakes to minimize potential losses. Furthermore, to improve their chances of placing winning Asian Handicap wagers, bettors should stick to reputable bookmakers and compare the prices of at least several operators to find the best available odds.

Some of the important factors to consider when betting on Asian Handicaps include the teams’ current form, motivation, and scoring records. Since Asian Handicaps are most commonly used for betting on football matches, fans of the sport should not miss the chance to explore the intricacies of this bet type and implement its benefits in their betting strategy.