Betting Markets
Handball may not be the most well-known of sports, but it’s fast, high-scoring and growing in popularity. It also has a wealth of betting markets to choose from, including these favourites at the UK’s top bookies.
Match or Tournament Winner
This is arguably the most obvious betting market of all: who will win a handball match or tournament? Predicting the latter is a longer shot, but you’ll likely find better odds than you would on singular matches.
Handicap
With the handicap betting market, the bookie will even things out between a strong team and a weak team by applying a goal deficit ahead of time. For example, the favourite handball team may have to overcome an 11-goal deficit for their win to secure a winning bet. This means more appealing odds can be offered to punters than a vanilla match winner bet.
Total Goals
There are a few ways you can bet on how many goals will be scored over the course of a handball match. Over/under, where you predict whether the total will exceed a certain number or not, and odd/even, where you predict whether it’ll be an odd or even number, are a couple of ways you can bet alongside naming a fixed number.
Highest Scoring Half
A handball match encompasses two 30-minute halves. Which half will feature the highest number of goals?
To Score
What do you think the home team will score in a particular match? How about the away team? You can make your best guesses with these markets.
Result and Total
As handball is such a high-scoring game, it’s always fun to predict what the tally will be. With this betting market, you’ll put a combined wager on who’ll win and what the total number of goals will be (in the over/under format).
In-Play Betting
You don’t have to bet before a handball match commences. In fact, many punters actually prefer live or in-play betting. Thanks to cutting-edge betting tech which can react almost instantly to the twists and turns of a match, you can take advantage of fluctuating odds as they happen.
For example, betting on a hotly-tipped outcome (such as the stronger team to win) may not carry particularly appealing odds to begin with. But if that outcome starts to look unexpectedly unlikely (for example, the stronger team has been playing poorly in the first half), then the odds on that outcome will become bigger and more lucrative. Bet at this point, and if it does come to pass then you’ll be in for a bigger return.
Cash Out
The cash out option is understandably popular with sports bettors. After all, it lets you draw money from a potentially losing bet. Say, for example, you’ve put money on the second half to see a higher score than the first, but as time ticks away it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. By hitting cash out you’ll effectively cancel the bet and get a return based on the live odds and your wager. Cashing out certainly beats getting nothing back in the event of a loss, although you might end up kicking yourself if the bet comes good.
Accumulators
As the name suggests, accumulators involve adding different selections on one betting slip. If your whole acca wins, all the various odds for the selections are multiplied to calculate your return, which means a bigger profit than betting individually.
Remember, though, that all of your selections have to win. One failed bet usually means the acca as a whole is a loss. This is why betting sites can offer acca insurance, which lets you take your wager back as free bets if one selection lets you down.
Bonuses
Many sports bettors keep an eye out for the best welcome bonuses — in fact, it can often be the deciding factor when pondering potential UK betting sites to join. Here are a few to look out for:
Matched Deposit Bonuses
When a bookie offers a matched deposit bonus, they’re saying they’ll match your first deposit up to a certain maximum percentage and upper limit. An example would be ‘100% up to £100’. In this instance, if you sign up and deposit £60, you’ll have a total of £120 to bet with. Just bear in mind the potential wagering and minimum odds requirements that typically come tied to this type of bonus.
Free Bets
Do bookmakers really hand out free bets? Yes! You’ll usually have to make a qualifying bet with your own money first, but free bets are a very common bonus. For example, a typical welcome bonus might be that you get a tenner in free bets (either as a lump sum or in smaller increments) after you make a £10 bet at qualifying odds. As with all welcome bonuses, check the small print for wagering requirements and other stipulations.
Promotions
Welcome bonuses are great, but ongoing promotions can be even better. The top betting sites will keep these coming to keep their customers happy, so look out for:
- Money back offers, where you’ll get at least some of your stake back as free bets if your bet loses
- Enhanced odds, where certain selections will have their odds artificially boosted to provide a better return than you’d normally expect.
Payment Methods
The top UK betting sites make sure you can deposit and withdraw money in a way that suits you. The usual range of banking methods on offer includes:
- Visa and Mastercard debit cards
- PayPal
- Neteller
- Skrill
- Paysafecard
- Bank transfer
Mobile Betting
You can have a flutter pretty much anywhere these days thanks to the rise of mobile betting apps in the UK. You can navigate your way to the bookie’s website on your phone or tablet’s browser, and bet from there. Or, if it’s available, you can download the native app from the App Store or Google Play, and have it on your device at all times. Native apps tend to be faster and easier to use, and can also keep you abreast of the latest promos and offers with push notifications.
Betting Tips for Handball
It’s well worth taking time out in the lead up to a handball match to research the teams in question. Don’t just look at their overall rankings — you’ll want to focus on their recent form. Have they been working well as a team? Have there been any injuries, particularly to star players? Be sure to also look at how each team has fared in previous confrontations. You should be able to look up the head to head stats online and see what the scorelines have been, along with how each match actually unfolded. The latter will put you in a better position to predict momentum shifts when betting in-play.
The Major Handball Tournaments
Handball basks in the most global attention every four years at the Olympic Games. Beyond that, there are the World Men’s Handball Championship and the World Women’s Handball Championship which take place at various venues every two years. Other international tournaments include the European Men’s Handball Championship, the European Women’s Handball Championship, and their Asian equivalents, all of which also take place every two years.
There are also numerous domestic leagues presenting betting opportunities, such as the German Handball-Bundesliga and the Premier Handball League in England. The best European teams do battle in the EHF Champions League, which unfolds annually.
Eager to Bet on Handball?
Whether you’re already a fan or new to the world of handball, there’s a lot to explore and bet on. Have a browse of the best UK handball betting sites, sign up and wager today!
Frequently Asked Questions
Very, as long as you ensure you only use betting sites that are licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC). These are the only sites we’ll ever recommend at Compare.bet, which means you’re safe in the knowledge they abide by all fair play and security standards.
The top UK bookies have a range of banking methods available, so you can send money via your debit card, prepaid card or a number of e-wallet services. All you have to do is click or tap over to the cashier page and follow the instructions.
Yes, the best UK bookies will let you add different selections together to potentially win big.
Betting tips are easy to find online these days, and they can certainly give you a leg-up with the more niche sports like handball, a sport that’s quite niche for the average punter. But don’t take any tip as a certainty – remember that luck is always the deciding factor, and that tips are just a guide to bolster your own research.
