Asian Betting Markets Explained: Overview, Strategy & Recommended Bookmakers

What are Asian betting markets? If you’re new to sports betting or are an inexperienced sports bettor, then you’ve probably wondered what Asian betting markets are? 

You may have asked questions such as what’s the difference between a handicap bet and an asian handicap bet? Or what’s the difference between asian goal line and total goals? 

In this article we’re going to cover the different Asian betting markets, explain what they are and how they differ from regular football betting markets, plus look at some tips, strategies and bookmakers for Asian betting markets. 

What are Asian betting markets/lines? 

Asian betting markets are merely a twist on many standard betting markets, such as ‘Total Goals’ or ‘Handicap’. 

The twist being that there are more options in terms of lines, as well as more variety in terms of how the bet is settled. With many Asian betting markets, bettors can not only win or lose, but they can win half, lose half, or get their stake refunded, depending on the outcome of the fixture that they’re betting on. 

For many punters, Asian markets are far more appealing, because the possibilities are greater. No longer can you simply win or lose, which is perhaps why lots of gamblers, particularly those with lots of betting experience, prefer Asian markets to regular markets. 

What Asian betting markets exist? 

There’s a whole host of Asian betting markets for punters to get stuck into. Let’s take a look at each one. 

Asian Handicap

As is the case with standard handicap betting, Asian handicap betting involves betting on teams to win or lose according to a handicap. For example, you could bet on ‘Manchester City -1 Handicap’ against Arsenal, and for you to win the bet, Manchester City would need to win by two clear goals, thus covering the handicap. 

With Asian handicap betting, there are more options. The handicaps aren’t only whole numbers such as -1, -2. Asian handicap betting includes quarter, half and three-quarter handicaps too. 

So you could bet on ‘Real Madrid -0.75 Asian Handicap’ in a game against fierce rivals Barcelona. In this case, Real Madrid would need to win by at least one goal for a half win, but they’d need to win by two goals or more for a full win. 

For a full breakdown of Asian Handicap betting, please see our dedicated Asian Handicap guide

Asian Goal Line 

The Asian Goal Line is similar to betting on ‘Total Goals’. However, instead of only being able to bet on Over 2.5, Over 3.5 and so on, there are options for quarter, half, three-quarter goal lines as well. 

For example, let’s say there’s a game between Netherlands and Belgium, and you want to bet on plenty of goals, you could take ‘Over 2.75 Goals’ on the Asian Goal Line. For three quarter goal lines like this, you have a half win option as well as just win or lose. If there are less than three goals scored, you will lose the bet. If three goals are scored, then you’ll win half, and if four goals go in, you’ll win fully. 

You can find a full breakdown and explanation of Asian Goal Line betting in our dedicated Asian Goal Line guide

Asian Total Corners

Much like the Asian Goal Line, bettors can bet on the total number of corners in a match. You can bet over or under a certain number, but the beauty here is that you have quarter, half and three-quarter totals too, meaning that you don’t have win or lose as final outcomes. 

For example, if you bet on ‘Over 7 Corners’ and there are seven corners exactly, you get your stake back as a refund. If you’d placed a bet on ‘Over 7.5 Corners’ using the regular ‘Total Corners’ market, you’d lose if just seven corners were taken during the match. 

A detailed explanation of the Asian Total Corners market can be found here

Asian Handicap Corners

Asian Handicap Corners differ from standard handicap corners. Why? Well, as with all Asian betting markets, you can not only win and lose, but you can win half, lose half and get a refund too. 

Instead of simply betting on one team ‘-2 Corners’, which means you need that team to take at least three more corners than their opponents for you to win the bet, you could bet on ‘-2 Asian Corners’. You’d still need your team to take three or more corners extra compared to their opponents, but if they took only two more, you’d get your stake back as a refund. 

For more details on the ‘Asian Handicap Corners’ market, take a look at our comprehensive guide

Asian Total Cards

Asian lines bettors can also get in on the card betting action. By placing bets such as ‘Over 2.75 Asian Total Cards’, or ‘Under 2.25 Asian Total Cards’, punters can win half, or lose half, as well win or lose. 

A full breakdown of Asian Total Card betting can be found here

Tips & Strategy

If you’re betting on Asian betting markets, then you need to have a strategy, which is the case no matter what sport you’re betting on, and no matter what. 

You’ll see below links to our specific asian betting guides. In these guides we’ve covered things such as what a betting strategy for these markets might look like, as well as several things you can do to help you make more informed asian market betting decisions. 

Asian Handicap 

There’s plenty you can do, lots of which are quite simple to help you become a better Asian handicap punter. Check out our guide

Asian Goals

Betting on Asian goals can be hard, but there are rules you can put in place to help you form a solid Asian goals strategy. Read about this and more in our detailed guide

Asian Cards

This is quite a specific market, and there’s lots to cover, so why not take a look at our full Asian cards betting guide

Asian Corners

Much like betting on regular corners, but with the extra options that Asian betting markets provide. Full coverage of Asian corner markets can be found in our specific guides.

Asian Handicap Cards

As you do with standard handicap card betting, by betting on Asian Handicap Cards, you can bet on teams to either collect more or less cards than their opponents according to a handicap. 

Like all Asian markets, you can win half, lose half and get your stake refunded. This is in addition to the standard betting outcomes of winning and losing. 

Again, this market is covered in much more detail in our ‘Asian Handicap Cards’ guide

First Half Asian Goal Line 

Exactly the same as the Asian Goal Line market, but only the first half counts. This means that if you place a bet on ‘Over 1 First Half Goal’, you need at least two goals to be scored during the first half to win the bet. If only one goal is scored, you will receive a refund. Anything less and you will of course lose. 

First Half Asian Handicap

Much like the Asian Handicap market, only for the first half of the fixture. Let’s say you bet on ‘Bayern Munich -1 Asian Handicap’ in this market, you’ll need Bayern to be leading by at least two goals at half time to win the bet. If they win the first half by just one goal, your stake will be refunded. If they’re losing or drawing at the break, you’ll lose the bet. 

First Half Asian Corners

It’s identical to the Asian Corners market, but again, only the first half counts. Bet on ‘Over 3 First Half Asian Corners’ and you’ll need the two teams involved to share at least four first half corners for the win. However, thanks to the beauty of Asian markets, three corners exactly will result in your stake being refunded. 

Which bookmakers allow Asian betting markets?

The thing with Asian betting markets is that they’re not as readily available to UK customers as say ordinary markets such as ‘Both Teams to Score’ or ‘Full Time Result’. 

You can visit one of the many popular UK betting brands and place a bet on ‘Total Goals’, but unfortunately, not all of the main sportsbooks available to customers in the United Kingdom offer asian betting lines. 

Fear not, though, as there are still several options for those bettors looking to get in on the Asian betting market action. 

At present, the best bookmakers offering Asian betting markets are as follows: 

How to bet on Asian Lines with Bet365 

Arguably the biggest and best in terms of online bookmakers, bet365 doesn’t disappoint when it comes to Asian betting markets. 

When it comes to big competitions, such as the World Cup, the Premier League, or the Champions League, bettors can choose from a whole host of Asian betting markets. To find these markets, from the homepage, choose ‘Soccer’ from the sports menu on the left. 

Once on the main ‘Soccer’ page, find your chosen fixture, then from the tabs at the top of the main odds page select ‘Asian Lines’. Here you will find betting odds for markets such as ‘Asian Handicap’, ‘Asian Goal Line’, Alternative Asian Handicap’, First Half Asian Goal Line’, ‘Asian Total Corners’, and more. 

How to bet on Asian Lines with BetVictor

Another viable option for those seeking to place Asian lian bets is BetVictor. Here you’ll find a few options. 

Once you’ve arrived at the BetVictor homepage, find ‘Football’ using the list of sports on the left hand side. Find the game you wish to place a bet on, then once you’ve clicked on that game, select ‘Handicaps’ from the top menu. 

On the ‘Handicaps’ section of the game, you’ll see betting odds for ‘Asian Handicap’ and ‘First Half Asian Handicap’ markets. 

How to bet on Asian Lines with NetBet

NetBet offers a reasonable selection of Asian betting markets, especially for big fixtures such as those that take place at the FIFA World Cup or in the English Premier League. 

Arrive at the NetBet homepage, then simply select ‘Football’ from the customary sports menu on the left hand side. 

From the primary football page, find the fixture you’re looking for. Now, on NetBet, things are slightly different as the ‘Asian Goal Line’ options are in and amongst the standard ‘Total Goals’ options, so from the main odds page for your chosen game, scroll down until you hit ‘Total Goals’, and alongside the odds for say ‘Over 2.5 Goals’, you’ll see the odds for ‘Over 2.0 Goals’. 

NetBet also offers ‘Asian Handicap’ betting, plus ‘First Half Asian Goal Line’ and’ First Half Asian Team Goal Line’, not to mention ‘Asian Team Goal Line’. 

How to bet on Asian Lines with Unibet

Unibet offers lots of variety for bettors wanting to wager on Asian lines. All you need to do is head to the Unibet homepage, and find ‘Football’ from the typical sports list on the left side of the page. 

From here, choose your fixture, then click on it. This will take you to the main odds page for the fixture. Using the tabs at the top, scroll to the left until you see ‘Asian Lines’. Here you will find a selection of Asian betting markets, including ‘Asian Handicap’ and ‘Asian Goal Line’. 

How to bet on Asian Lines with Smarkets 

Now, Smarkets is a little different, this is because it is a betting exchange and not a bookmaker. Punters bet against other punters, and Smarkets take a small commission. 

The Asian betting markets at Smarkets aren’t in large supply, but players can still bet on Asian Handicap and First Half Asian Handicap lines. 

To find the Asian lines at Smarkets, simply use the mobile app or visit the website, before selecting football from the left hand sports menu. Find the game you wish to bet on, then using the top menu select ‘Handicap’. 

How to bet on Asian Lines with 10bet

10bet also offers punters some solid options in terms of Asian lines. To find them, you need to select ‘Football’, which is located at the top of the sports menu on the homepage. 

From the main football section, find the game you want to bet on, then select ‘All Markets’ from the tabs at the top. 

Finding the Asian lines on 10bet probably isn’t the easiest for the inexperienced punter, as they’re slightly disguised. You’ll find ‘Asian Goal Lines’ in the ‘O/U FT’ section and ‘Asian First Half Goal Lines’ in the O/U 1st Half’ section. ‘Asian Handicaps’ come under ‘Handicap FT’, ‘Handicap Alternate Spread’ and ‘Handicap 1st Half’. 

10bet also offers punters ‘Asian handicap Corners’ on some games, which again can be found by scrolling through the ‘All Markets’ section. There are also ‘Asian Handicap Cards’ and a few other Asian markets to delve into, all of which can be found in the ‘All Markets’ section. 

FAQs

Do asian betting markets have better odds?

By default, asian markets don’t have better odds, but there are times when the line for ‘Over 2.5 Goals’ will be slightly higher in the asian betting market than it is in the stand ‘Total Goals’ market. 
Typically, if you’re betting on ‘Over 2 Goals’ for instance, you can expect lower odds than a standard ‘Over 2.5 Goals’, but the beauty is the refund if two goals go in exactly, which in the long run can be the difference between profit and loss. 

Where did these asian betting markets get invented? 

The story goes that journalist Joe Saumarez Smith created the ‘Asian Handicap’ when asked by an Indonesian bookmaker to translate a popular Asian betting method. The rest of the Asian betting markets developed shortly after. 

Why don’t some bookmakers have asian betting markets?

This one really comes down to a question of profitability. Unfortunately, from the point of view of the bookmaker, Asian betting markets aren’t as profitable as many other markets. 
This is partly because of the half win, refund, half lose situation, and partly because Asian betting markets tend to be the preserve of the more experienced punter. 

Do professional gamblers just bet on asian betting markets?

Asian betting markets are definitely more widely used among serious bettors and professional gamblers, and there are indeed some professional gamblers who focus their attention purely on Asian betting markets.

Some pro punters bet only on Asian Handicaps, while others focus exclusively on Asian Goal Line bets. However, some professional punters focus on other areas too, so it would be wrong to say that all professional players only bet on asian betting markets. 

Are asian betting markets more profitable than normal betting markets?

Asian markets can be more profitable when bet correctly. Why? Mainly, because they offer more variety in terms of outcomes. Even when punters don’t win fully, they win half, get a refund, or lose half, all of which can help to be profitable in the long run.

Bradley Gibbs
Bradley Gibbs

Bradley is a freelance writer and sports betting analyst, specialising in all things golf, football, and horse racing, who has also written a variety of educational sports betting content. Over the years, Bradley has produced a plethora of content in the sports betting niche, writing for numerous websites and publications, including popular UK betting newspaper The Racing & Football Outlook.

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