Guide To Asian Handicap Betting
”…a valuable extra way to beat the odds is by betting on Asian handicaps…”
Using Asian Handicap Betting to Improve Chances Of Making Winning Football Bets
Know plenty about football? Love the game?
Did you know there’s a way to bet on games that rules out the draw? Letting you turn your passion and knowledge to cash depending on the final score, and taking some cash off the bookmakers.
Asian Handicap betting is the name of the game. Determine your game selection, work out the expected superiority, find the best odds, and place your bet. There will be only two possible outcomes to worry about, and you’ll be placing the same types of bets as many professional gamblers.
With Asian handicap odds you get higher returns than fixed odds, the draw won’t worry you, you can back your favourite side to win if they’re the heavy underdog team and do actually lose at the final score, and can keep in the action as odds change through the game. Betting this way can definitely have an advantage over traditional win, lose, or draw fixed odds.
What can be better than watching your favourite side or your country’s team battle for glory with a small side bet running on the result? And what better way to do that than using the wagering method that’s steadily becoming one of the most popular? Indeed, betting on Asian handicaps in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar is likely to be the form of betting that attracts the most interest from supporters of the national teams in the tournament.
Asian handicap betting is now widely recognized as one of the best ways to bet on football matches. It’s a great way to use your football knowledge to place simple win or lose bets on soccer games with the potential of a draw eliminated. It gives you a valuable alternative to other forms of well-known soccer bets.
With this form of betting you can:
- Win more bets because there are only two potential results – win or lose.
- Place bets in a way that gets your stake back.
- Get better value – Asian handicap bookies offer better odds than traditional betting odds.
- Win your bet even if your chosen team loses.
- Still place accumulators (with some bookies that will accept Asian handicap accumulator bets).
In the major tournaments, it’s likely that opportunities for placing Asian handicap bets in matches will be the most popular way for fans to place wagers on their favourite teams. Plus looking for good opportunities for Asian handicaps is one of the better ways to place a no lose bet.
In this guide, I’ll give you an explanation of how you can take advantage of the better odds you get with Asian handicaps to bet on football selections in everyday soccer matches. We’ll be covering:
- Asian handicap betting explained. What it means and how it works.
- The rules of Asian handicaps.
- How to understand the betting market and bookies handicap odds.
- Different types of Asian handicap bet.
- Handicap betting strategies.
- The best bookies to use for betting with Asian handicaps, depending on which country you live in.
- Betting tips and strategies for best results.
- Where to get calculators, charts and tables which show explanations of Asian odds.
Right, lets get straight on to Asian Handicaps.
If you want to skip the explanations and jump straight into finding the best Asian handicap betting sites or bookies and make your first wager, there are two main things you need to think about first:
- Whether you want to bet with a global Asian handicap bookie or an Asian-based bookie.
- Whether they offer any bonuses or promotions for sports-related betting that will give extra value.
Of course, there are other considerations such as making sure you can deposit or withdraw in your local currency (or at least a currency which you can use), but taking these two main considerations into account the best bookies I’ve found offering betting with Asian handicaps are Bet365 and AsianBookie.
We reviewed Bet365 and confirmed they’re a well-known and ultra-reliable global operator. They have a superb, easy-to-use website with plenty of features and offers, such as live streaming of sporting events that you can watch if you’ve placed a qualifying bet.
Bet365 streams over 200,000 events live to your PC or mobile every year – so you can bet as the action unfolds. Highlights include Masters Series Tennis tournaments and matches from some of the top domestic Soccer leagues in the world. To use the Live Streaming service you will need to be logged in and have a funded account or have placed a bet in the last 24 hours. Any fixture/event on our website which has the Play or Video icon next to it is scheduled to be shown via Live Streaming.
AsianBookie is equally well known in the Asia region and caters for betting fans from many Asian countries. You can read more about other Asia-focused sports betting sites further below, with a breakdown of individual countries and the operators available within those countries.
Pinnacle has long been recognized as one of the best sportsbooks with which to place bets on Asian handicaps. Having an account is one of the main steps you’ll need to take if you want to consider any attempt to bet on football without losing. The other is in getting to understand arbitrage and how it works.
What Is Asian Handicap Betting?
Asian handicap betting is the smart way to bet on soccer – it’s been the most popular form of football betting in the Far East and Asian regions for many years.
In Asian handicap betting, two competing teams are given odds that handicap one of the teams. The team most fancied to win is given a deficit number of goals, and the underdog is given a head start. These handicaps are expressed in goals, or fractions of goals. The aim of the bookies who price up Asian handicaps is to try and set the odds so that each team has an equal chance of winning.
So, with Asian handicap betting, you are betting on the ability of the favourite or underdog to overcome their handicap, rather than betting on a home or away win or draw. The handicap is intended to remove the difference in the ability of the two teams, in the same way that horses are given different weights in a race to try to make them have even chances.
In a soccer match, the greater the difference in ability between the teams, the more goals you would expect the favourite to win by, and therefore the bigger the handicap difference between them.
Put simply, Asian Handicap odds eliminate the option of a draw in a soccer match, so you have only two bet options instead of three. This is what’s known as a 2-way market, as opposed to the standard 3-way market of home win, away win, draw. It’s very similar to the concept of laying a team to lose on betting exchanges.
Although you’ll mainly see handicap betting in football or soccer, it’s also a common betting option in American Football/NFL and rugby too.
How Does Asian Handicap Betting Work – Understanding Handicap Rules & Odds
To get the best winning opportunities in Asian handicap soccer betting, you’ll need to understand how Asian handicap odds work. They might look complicated at first but are actually quite easy to understand. When you’re looking through the lists of matches, they’re presented in different ways:
Asian Handicap 0.5
Let’s take an example soccer match – Juventus vs Barcelona.
Bet365 is offering Asian handicap odds – Juventus -0.5 at 6/4 or 2.5, Barcelona at +0.5.
So this market is for Juventus to win by at least one goal. They can’t win by 0.5 goals because you can’t score half a goal. So there’s no draw result for your bet, but the match itself could end up as a draw. If Juventus win, they must win by more than half a goal.
Asian Handicap 0
This bet is offered when the teams are pretty level in ability. Here you are betting without the draw being an option for the final result. You win the bet if your selected team wins, and your stake is returned if a tie.
Asian Handicap 1
If you place a bet on a -1 handicapped selection, you will need your team to win by at least two goals. If your team only wins by one goal, you get your stake refunded.
If you bet on the team that is quoted +1 (a one-goal lead handicap), then your bet wins if they win or draw. If your selected team loses by one goal, your stake is refunded.
This can be a good value bet if you think the underdog in a match can win (and that does happen regularly). If the underdog in this handicap can play well and avoid losing by more than one goal, then you will not lose the bet.
1.5 Handicap
In this bet, you’re choosing the -1.5 handicap team to win by two or more goals.
If you bet on the team with a 1.5 start, you win if that team wins or draws the match. You also win if the team loses by one goal.
Of course, it does not end there. You will also see bets at 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, and so on.
Double Asian Or Split Handicap Betting
Now it gets a little more complicated. Split balls or double Asian. Sometimes you may see a handicap expressed as + or – 0.25 goal start (sometimes written as 0, 0.5). This means that half of your stake is on your team with a 0-goal handicap, and half with a 0.5-goal handicap.
The best way to understand split balls is to imagine having two separate bets with your stake being split equally between the 2 component handicaps. So in double Asian handicap bets, you are placing the bet into two parts.
Juventus (-0.5,-1) vs Barcelona (+0.5,+1)
Here half of your stake is placed on Juventus at minus 0.5 a goal and the other half on Juventus at -1.
Live Betting In-Running On Asian Handicaps
Live betting, or betting in running as it’s also known, has become hugely popular in recent years. It gives you the ability to bet during the game, depending on how well you think one of the teams are playing (or how badly the other team are playing, of course!)
Odds on in-running Asian handicap bets are also offered by most leading bookmakers.
These bets are based on the result of the rest of the game after your bet has been placed. So you will see the odds change throughout the match. If one team is winning by one goal at half time, their handicap odds might be +2. As the game progresses, those odds will increase or decrease depending on their superiority during the match.
Bet365 are probably the best bookmaker to bet with if you’re looking for in running handicap betting, especially on soccer matches. They look to have the widest selection of games – pretty much covering every league you’d be interested in – and sometimes offer very attractive odds.
Converters, Charts, & Tables
When I get time I’ll post an Asian handicap table here. These are used to give you a simplified table view of the handicap odds as explained in the sections above.
For now, you can visit these websites for some useful converters (for converting 12x odds into handicap), charts, or tables.
• Bettify converter
• Betting Advice forum thread
• Valuepunter Asian Handicap table/chart
What Are The Key Benefits Of Asian Handicap Betting?
The word value is often used in betting to refer to the act of getting better odds than the real chances imply. This is not always easy to do, but Asian handicaps do give the best value of any type of football bet. You’ll see the margins in traditional betting are around 110% while the percentages on Asian handicaps are much lower and often around 103%.
• You have a 50% better chance of winning than with traditional odds, because you’re betting on two outcomes (underdog or favourite) instead of the normal three (home, draw or away).
• This gives you the chance for more frequent winning returns from your betting stakes.
• Asian Handicap betting market margins can be up to 3 times better value than traditional fixed odds. An example might be where a very strong team are playing a big underdog. The favourite team in this example might be 1/10 to win outright on standard betting markets, but much better odds on the Asian handicap to win by more than the handicap itself.
• You’ll win with your bet even if your chosen team draws or loses the match!
• In some circumstances, the Asian handicap bet lets you get your stake back. Let’s say your chosen team are 9/10 with a +1 goal start. If they win or draw, your handicap bet gets a winning return – but if they lose by only one goal, you’ll get your stake returned.
• Asian Handicap accumulators are possible with some betting operators.
• It’s great fun when you’re following a live match..
What’s The Best Way To Take Advantage? – Useful Strategies For Success
Well, this is where your soccer knowledge and conviction can play a part. The trick – as in all forms of betting – is to identify value. Find the teams that are badly mismatched in ability, and look for any the best betting opportunities.
As an example, let’s say Arsenal are playing Exeter. You may expect to see fixed betting odds of 1/6 for Arsenal to win and this would not be worth taking a bet on the result – but on the Asian handicap, Arsenal may be offered at 35/40 with a -2.5 goal start, and Exeter at the same odds with a +2.5 goal start. Now you have an opportunity to place a bet.
In this example, if you fancied Arsenal to beat Exeter by 3 goals or more you’d place a bet on them overcoming their handicap. If they do go on to win by at least 3 goals, you win the bet. You may also believe that Exeter wouldn’t lose by 3 goals, so you’d take the handicap bet on them at +2.5.
Predictions
There are dozens of websites (or sporting newspapers) which give predictions or tips which you can use to determine good value handicap soccer bets.
The Racingpost have an extremely valuable betting website covering all types of sportsbetting. Some of their writers run blogs which give their own views on good bets, but in general the site is rich with news about football teams which may give you an edge.
There are other ways to get Asian handicap predictions and tips – the most obvious would be to sign up with a tipster that offers a free newsletter.
Remember though that they do have a reason for sending newsletter and tips for free. Normally they are capturing your email address so they can send you other offers too. Nothing wrong with that, but just note you may get more than just the regular tipping email.
You could also sign up with a subscription service. Many tipsters do run these for a fee – usually either monthly or annually. Be careful to make sure you get a free trial if you do want to go down the subscription route. You’ll need to be confident that the service has a strong percentage of winning tips.
Remember that no one can win all the time. Even the best teams get beaten.
Where & How To Place An Asian Handicap Bet
Think that betting on Asian Handicaps is only available through Asian sports betting sites?
Well, that’s not the case. There are bookies that cater only for the Asian market of course, but there also plenty of well know names which also cover handicap betting.
We’ll take a look at a couple of regional and better known global bookmakers here.
AsianBookie.com
AsianBookie are the leading Asia region bookmaker – offering a full range of odds on pre-match and live/in-running betting. They cover pretty much any major league in any country.
Bet365.com
Bet365 need no introduction. They are simply one of the leading betting operators throughout the world – offering complete ranges of bets on all types of sports, casino, poker, and bingo.
Which Bookies Offer Asian Handicap Bets In My Country?
Cambodia
Mansion88.com does have a Khmer language interface.
China
Asian handicap betting is as popular with Chinese gamblers as anywhere else – all these sites offer Chinese Language interfaces and you can deposit/withdraw in RMB Chinese Yuan.
Bet365, ladbrokes, 188bet, mansion88, bodog88
Hong Kong
Pinnacle Sports are good here. Ladbrokes and 188Bet are other options.
India
Of the sites listed below, only Bet365 offer deposits in Rupees. All others can be used by India residents by depositing in Euros or Dollars.
Bet365, Betfair, Ladbrokes, William Hill, Paddy Power, Pinnacle Sports
Indonesia
188bet, mansion88, 12bet
Japan
All sites listed below accept Japanese currency. Pinnacle and Mansion88 also run Japanese language interfaces.
Pinnacle Sports, Bet365, Ladbrokes, Mansion 88
Korea
Mansion88.com does have a Korean language interface.
Macau
Ladbrokes might be the best bet here with their Pataca currency option.
Malaysia
188Bet are the leading Asian handicap bookie in Malaysia. If you’re a Malaysian resident will find a number of secure and private banking options that allow you to deposit with your bank account and also get paid any winnings direct to your bank with no cost.
Other options in Malaysia include 12bet, Mansion88, and Bet365.
Singapore
All sites listed accept deposits in SGD Singapore Dollars and are available in different Singapore languages.
Pinnacle Sports, Bet365, Betfair, Ladbrokes, William Hill
Taiwan
There are two Asian bookmaker sites that accept deposits in TWD Taiwan New Dollars – Bet365 and Pinnacle Sports.
Vietnam
Leading bookmakers here include Mansion88, 12bet, and 188 bet.
What Currencies Can I Bet With
Most well know and reputable betting sites offer the option of betting with a range of different currencies. Certainly that includes the two mentioned above.
These will include all the obvious local currencies:
• Hong Kong Dollar
• Singapore Dollar
• Chinese Yuan
• Malaysian Ringgit
• India Rupee
• Japanese Yen
• Macanese Pataca
• Taiwan Dollar
• Indonesian Rupiah
• Vietnamese Dong
As an example, click on this link which will take you to Bet365’s page listing the currencies they accept, and a range of deposit options.
Alternatively here’s the link to 188Bet’s site map which shows languages covered in the top left hand corner.
How To Deposit For Handicap Betting
Depositing money into a sports-book is rarely a problem for most people. But if you live in a region where betting is restricted in someway it can get more complicated.
Most often normal bank transfers or credit cards will be OK – especially in countries which have regulated online gambling – but both Neteller and Moneybookers are also good options. In Malaysia, it’s worth looking at using EntroPay.
If you’re looking at gambling from the US there is some good news for you. So far three US states have regulated online gambling and if you’re a resident of those you should have no problem depositing cash in the casinos or sports-betting sites that you’re allowed to.
Valuable Guides & Resources
For more information on Asian handicap betting visit this excellent guide at AsianHandicapGuide.com
This article at Betfair takes you through some useful Asian handicap betting strategies and tips.
For some more visual guidance on how to bet asian handicaps see the video below, or choose from plenty you’ll find on Youtube.
Trading
You can trade on Asian handicaps just the same as you would with any other bet. Either during or in the run up to any match the odds will fluctuate, either with the weight of money being placed or how the match is actually going (if in play). So in theory it’s possible to place a bet a few hours before a game and – if the odds move in your favor – to cash out either before or during the match.
Using this method you could of course mix and match, perhaps placing the original bet at fixed odds and using the in play Asian handicap market to trade out.
This article from Sportstradingnetwork explores the options and possibilities.
Risks
From a gambling perspective, the risks with betting on Asian handicaps are the same as any other type of betting . There is the possibility of losing money you can’t afford to lose, and of becoming addicted to trying to win or chase losses. Read the responsible gambling page if you think you have a problem with this, and I’d suggest you read it before undertaking any form of gambling or betting.
From the perspective of the bets themselves, this way of wagering clearly lowers the risk because you are narrowing the bet down to only two possible outcomes. The risk of losing is always there though even with a 50/50 bet!
Perhaps the biggest risk might end up being in waiting to place a bet and watching the odds move against you. In other words, you wait too long and then risk not winning as much as if you’d bet earlier.
Summary
Focusing only on placing your football wagers using Asian handicap bets is a good way of improving your chances of winning. It effectively reduces the number of possible outcomes in any game from three to two. There are still risks as with any form of betting, but they’ve been significantly reduced.
Using Asian handicaps is a valuable extra way to bet on football matches. Although it might seem complicated at first it’s fairly easy to understand once you get the basics.