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Asian Handicap Betting Explained - Guide & Examples | LeoVegas

Asian handicap betting explained - guide & info

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Asian odds are a common site in football matches and some other sports. Asian handicap betting can look complex for players who haven't used it before, so we've put together this guide to break down everything about this unique system. Keep reading to get the Asian handicap bets explanation in full detail.

Asian handicap meaning and uses

Despite the name, Asian handicap betting is not a betting system for only Asian games, but instead is a way of handling odds in games where a draw result is possible, especially in football. Essentially, it removes the 'both sides lose' result by applying extra 'goals' at the start of the game based on which team is the favourite and which is the underdog. The bigger the difference in skill between the teams, the more 'goals' are added.

To adjust for draw results, the system uses concepts such as half-goals, quarter-goals, half-wins, and half-losses, all of which come together to remove the chance of total loss in the event of a draw. At first glance, the system seems quite complex, however, once the system is understood, it is a fairly intuitive way of handling bets.

Asian handicap examples

The best way to understand Asian handicap betting is through examples. Here are some of the most popular Asian handicap markets and how they work:

Asian handicap 0.5

An Asian handicap of 0.5 means that the team with outside odds has a very slight advantage, and counts as starting the game with half a goal more. This means that a bet on the outside team pays out if the outside team wins or the game ends in a draw.

Example:

You place a bet on the Reds to win against the Blues with Asian odds of +0.5. If the Reds win the match or the match is a draw, then the bet wins. If the Blues win, then the wager is lost.

Asian handicap 1.5

An Asian handicap of 1.5 works roughly the same as a 0.5 handicap, except for one extra rule. Apart from the outside team needing to win, the bet also pays out if they lose by only one goal. That's because the outside team effectively starts with 1.5 'goals'.

Example: You place a bet on the Reds to beat the Blues with Asian odds of +1.5. During the match, the Blues win the match 1-0. However, because this is a goal difference of less than 1.5, the bet still wins.

Asian handicap 3

An Asian handicap of 3, much like a handicap of 2 or 1, has a different set of outcomes for bets placed. Wins and losses are still paid out as normal, and a draw pays to the team with outside odds. However, if the team with inside odds wins, but by 1 goal less than the handicap amount, the bet is refunded like a push result in a card game.

Example:

You place a bet on the Reds to beat the Blues with Asian odds of +3. If the result is 4-0 to the Blues, then the bet would be lost, whereas the Reds just need to win the match for the bet to win. If the result is a win for the Blues at 3-0, then the amount bet on the Reds is returned. Your stake is refunded as a push. Any goal difference less than that would result in the bet winning.

Asian handicap -1

Any handicaps with a negative mark in front of them are bets on the favourite team in each match. In this case, the conditions are essentially the same as the 3, 2, or 1 mentioned above, except that it works in the other direction. For -1, this means that a win with a goal difference of 2 or more will win the bet, a win with a goal difference of 1 would be a push result and a loss or draw would result in a lost bet.

Example:

You place a bet on the Reds to win with an Asian handicap of -1.0. The match ends 1-0 for the Reds, which isn't enough to beat the -1.0, so the wager is returned with no profit. A draw here would just result in a bet loss.

Asian handicap -2

An Asian handicap of -2 works in the same way as -1, except that more results give a losing outcome to the player. Essentially, with a -2 handicap, a goal difference of 3 or more is a winning result, a goal difference of 2 is a push, and anything less than that is a loss.

Example:

You place a bet on the Reds to win with an Asian handicap of -2.0. The match ends 2-0 for the Reds, which isn't enough to beat the -2.0, so the wager is returned with no profit. A draw here would make you lose the bet, but so would a 1-0, 2-1, or 3-2 result for the Red team.

Asian handicap -0.75

One of the most complex parts of Asian bets is when quarter-goals come into play, as this introduces the idea of half wins and half losses. Essentially, half wins happen on -0.75, -1.75, and so on. They replace push results where the entire result is refunded and instead return half your bet, and pay a win at the value of the other half of your stake.

This is best demonstrated via an example:

You place a 100 bet on the Reds to win with an Asian handicap of -0.75. The game ends in a result of 1-0 for the Reds. This isn't enough for an outright win as, with the adjusted scores with the handicap, it would effectively be a draw. In this case, 50 is immediately returned to you with no profit. The other 50 is then multiplied by the odds as a win and added to the original 50.

In real terms, if the odds for the case above are at 2.00, then the return on the bet would be 50 of the wager returned, plus 50 times 2.00 for 100, so the total return would be 150 on the wager.

Asian handicap -0.25

Asian handicaps of -0.25 work the same as -0.75, except they give results of half losses instead of half wins. For a half loss, half of the wager is returned unchanged, however, the other half is lost entirely.

As an example:

You place a 100 bet on the Reds to win with an Asian handicap of -0.25. The game ends in a result of 1-0 for the Reds. In this case, only 50 is returned to you, and the other half of the wager is lost.

Basic concepts of different Asian handicaps

The key numbers to keep in mind are -0.25, -0.5, -0.75, 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75, with all other numbers based around those:

  • -0.25 has the potential for a win, a half loss, or a loss
  • -0.5 has the potential for a win, a push, or a loss
  • -0.75 has the potential for a win, a half win or a loss
  • 0.25 has the potential for a win, a half win or a loss
  • 0.5 has the potential for a win, a push, or a loss
  • 0.75 has the potential for a win, a half-loss, or a loss

After these, all variations like 1.25 or -2.75 use the same conditions as above, except with a wide target goal difference.

Asian handicap bet advantages

There are two major advantages to using Asian handicaps when betting. The first is that bets can be far more nuanced than regular ones. They cover more options to hedge bets in uncertain cases or go for riskier bets where form suggests a larger win.

The other big plus is that it removes the idea of no-win cases as with standard draws, which potentially increases the chances of winning by removing several losing outcomes.

Asian handicap bet disadvantages

The biggest factor that puts players off of using Asian handicaps is that they can look extremely confusing from the outside. This is most true of any odds like 0.25, 0.75, or any other quarter-goal situation. While veteran players will know their way around, Asian handicaps can look imposing for new punters.

Conclusions

There is a general understanding in the sports betting world that Asian handicap betting is mainly used only by veteran gamblers, especially those who like to base their bets on significant amounts of research. These bets give data-driven gamblers more options to refine their bets.

That doesn't mean they are off-limits to newer players though. Despite the system looking complex, with a bit of practice, the handicaps will start making sense.

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