Our guide will teach you what handicap betting means and provide examples to explain how you can win using handicap betting at Lilibet Casino.

What Does Handicap Mean in Football Betting?

Handicap football betting is all about goal advantage. To place a handicap in football means to apply an advantage or disadvantage to a team by giving one team a goal advantage. Football betting sites do this to allow punters to have an even chance of winning when the odds are dramatically in favour of one side. By removing a draw and applying a handicap, the odds of winning betting on the underdog are now more equal. 

What Is a Handicap Line? 

You may see handicap betting referred to as line betting, spread betting or even points betting. These all mean the same thing. All simply different names for handicap betting and some names are more popular in certain jurisdictions. At Lilibet Casino, we’ll generally use the terms handicap (for European handicapping) and Asian handicap. 

European and Asian Football Handicap Explained

So, there is one major difference between a European football handicap and an Asian handicap. That is that the Asian Handicap only offers two outcomes, while the European handicap also offers the third draw option. This means that if the bet ends in a draw, the player’s stake is refunded to them.

Handicap Examples 

Still a little confused? Handicap betting is an advanced way to bet on football and it certainly takes some time to get used to its intricacies. To get you over that final hurdle, here are a few examples of Handicap football betting. 

For the purpose of this article, we are going to use Asian Handicaps, to best explain the drawn bet result. However, at Lilibet Casino, both Asian and European handicaps are available for football betting. As you can see from these Premier League handicap betting examples, there are plenty of advantages when wagering on the underdog using goal handicap betting. 

0.5 Handicap: Manchester United (-0.5) vs Burnley (0.5) 

• The underdogs Burnley begin the match with a half-goal advantage.
• A bet on Man United will be a successful one if Man U wins the match.
• A bet backing Man United will lose if the match is a draw.
• A bet on Burnley to win would get up if Burnley wins or manage to draw the match.

1.0 Handicap: Manchester United (-1) vs Burnley (1)

• This time Burnley has a full goal advantage over Man United.
• Betting on Man United means they must win by at least 2 goals to win the bet.
• If Man United wins by only 1 goal, then the match is essentially a draw, and you would get a refund of your stake if you backed them.
• If you bet on Newcastle to win, then they must win by any margin or draw. If they lose by only one goal, your stake is refunded. 

 1.5 Handicap: Manchester United (-1.5) vs Burnley (1.5)

• So, Burnley begins this match with a goal and a half advantage.
• This eliminates the draw because it’s more than a single goal.
• Backing Man United, they must score a minimum of 2 goals for the bet to win.
• Burnley must either win, draw or lose by only one goal to win that bet. 

2.0 Handicap: Manchester United (-2) vs Burnley (2.0)

• You guessed it! Burnley has a two-goal advantage in this market.
• If you bet on Man United, they must win by three goals or more for you to win your bet.
• If Man United happens to win but by a margin of exactly two goals, that would be a draw. An Asian handicap will refund your stake.
• If you choose to bet on Burnley, you can win the bet if Burnley loses by a margin of only one goal.
• If Burnley loses by two goals, again it is a draw, and you would see a refund of your stake.

Where To Bet on Football Events for Max Wins?

Where is the best location to place a football bet of the day? Lilibet Casino of course! Featuring both European and Asian handicap markets, there are so many markets for football betting at Lilibet. 

Sign up today to receive a welcome bonus that you can apply to a handicap bet on your favourite football leagues. Whether Premier League handicap betting or Europa league, Lilibet has you covered!