Handicap Football Betting — Definition and Examples

Handicap betting is used to even out the playing field between two teams who are not evenly matched. Gives a virtual advantage to the weaker team, and a virtual disadvantage to the stronger side. If you bet on the weaker team to win, they would have the edge over the stronger team, and chances would be even. If there weren’t a handicap placed, the stronger side would have won against the weaker team, and it would have been monotonous and predictable. Handicaps are displayed in under the name of the team.

For example: Let’s say you are betting on a match between Cameroon and Brazil. If the bookmaker declared a handicap of 1.5, then the results would look like this.

Cameroon (1.5) vs. Brazil (-1.5)

Cameroon is beginning the match with a 1.5 goal advantage compared to their opponent.
Because the advantage is more than one goal but not two, there couldn’t be a draw.
If you bet on Brazil to win, they would need at least two goals if you want to win the wager.
If you are wagering on Cameroon, they have to either win the match, draw, or concede by a single goal, to win the wager.