What is handicapping in sports?

Handicapping is one of the most common sports bets. Especially in football. Apart from the most popular game, handicapping as a market finds application in almost all other popular sports – basketball, tennis, volleyball, etc. The idea of handicapping is to equalize the forces in a sports match to some extent or tip the scales in one direction or another depending on the line the player chooses.
Be mindful that you can actually use the Back and Lay bets method if you are certain who will be either the winner or the looser.

Types of Handicap

In the simplest terms, a handicap gives an advantage to one of the two teams/players in a match. The principle is pretty much the same for all handicap types, but there is still a significant difference that is important to know if you use this market. The most popular varieties of handicap are two – European Handicap and Asian Handicap, which we will tell you about in the basics in the next few lines.

European handicap (EU Handicapper)

This is the most common type of handicap. It has three betting options – 1 X 2. It is very much like the classic market, where you have to guess whether the match will have a winner or end in a draw, with the only difference being the pre-set goal/point advantage for the given team/player.
The European handicap is divided into positive and negative. The positive handicap is given to the underdog in the match and looks like this: +1 +2 +3 etc. This means that the match starts with an advantage of 1, 2 or more goals/points for the underdog. While the negative handicap is given to the favourite in the match and looks like this: -1, -2, -3 etc. With the favourite starting with a deficit of 1, 2 or more goals/points. For example, Barcelona welcomes Elche and if you think the Catalans will win by more than 2 goals then your bet would be Barcelona to win -2. For the bet to be winning, the result must be in favour of the home team and they must do so by a margin of at least 3 goals: 4-1; 3-0; 5-2 etc. A result of 3-1; 2-0 or other will mean a loss for you.

Asian handicap (AH Handicapper)

The principle of the Asian Handicap is the same as the European one, but here the advantage or disadvantage for the favorite team/player may not be expressed in integers, but in decimal numbers: +/- 0.5 ; +/- 1.5. The main idea of the Asian handicap is that, unlike the European handicap, it gives you insurance on your bet. What is it all about? For example, if the bookmaker determines that Real Madrid is the favorite against Barcelona and the handicap for them is -1 and for the Catalans is +1, then your bet will only be a loser if the “white ballet” wins by more than 1 goal. If Barcelona lose by 1 goal difference – your bet is refunded.
In case of Asian Handicap with 0.5, 1.5 etc., the principle is the same, but the only difference is that you have no insurance on your bet. There is a third variation of this handicap which is called the “Double Asian Handicap”. It presents odds of 0.25 and 0.75. It actually combines the two types of Asian Handicap and divides the amount you bet equally. Example. You bet the sum of €100 on your favorite team to win with Double Asian Handicap “0; +0.5 (it is possible that this handicap is also written as 0.25). In fact, €50 is wagered on the favorite team winning with a handicap of €0 and €50 on the favorite team winning with a handicap of +0.5. Defacto there are all kinds of Asian handicaps in this bet. In case of a win for the favorite team – the whole bet is win-win, while in case of a draw – half of the bet will be refunded, and in case of a loss – you lose everything.

Types of handicap in different sports

The principle of handicapping is the same for all sports. The biggest difference comes in that it can enable you to bet on a “tie” in sports where it does not generally exist. Like in basketball for example. For similar to basketball sports you can try Money line betting.
Handicapping is also available for tennis, snooker, volleyball, handball and almost all other sports.