The Best Handball Betting Sites for 2023

Match Betting

Nothing is more straightforward than betting on the outcome of a match. You can bet on three options: the home team, a draw, or the away team.

For example, you might bet €100 on Denmark defeating Germany at odds of 1.80. If the Danes win, you will receive €180 (€80 in winnings + your €100 stake). If Germany wins the match or it ends in a draw, you lose your bet. Simple, right?

Handicap Betting

Most bookmakers frame handball betting markets with and without the draw option, as well as offering handicap lines to enliven what may otherwise be one-sided betting heats.

For example, Denmark may start a match against Germany with a -5.5 handicap. If you back the Danes in the handicap betting market, they must win by 6 goals or more. Any other result means you lose, even if Denmark win.

Totals Betting

Handball is a very high-scoring sport. Indeed, there is a rule that enables referees to penalize teams for what is known as passive play. The laws compel sides to play an attacking game, which makes for a good spectacle and increases the excitement of handball betting.

Remember that handball teams average between 20 and 35 goals per game, so take this into consideration when viewing handball betting odds.

Prop Betting

The best bookmakers for handball also offer a range of player and team prop bets.

For example, you might want to bet on the number of goals or assists a field player will make during a match or throughout a season/tournament. Or you might back a goalkeeper to make x number of saves.

Handball betting sites also accept bets on whether a match will go to overtime or end in a dramatic shootout.

IHF World Handball Championship

European countries have completely dominated both the men’s and women’s World Handball Championships since being founded in 1938 and 1957, respectively. France has won the men’s championship six times to date (1995, 2001, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2017), while Sweden and Romania boast four championships. The international tournament takes place every two years in odd years.

Summer Olympic Games

Since handball rejoined the Olympic Games program in its indoor guise in 1972, teams representing countries that no longer exist have enjoyed the most success. Yugoslavia won gold twice (1972 and 1984), the Soviet Union triumphed three times (1976, 1988 and 1992) and East Germany prevailed in 1980. Croatia, Russia, France, and Denmark have all won gold since the 1996 Summer Olympic Games.

EHF Champions League

There are several international club handball tournaments, the pick of which is the European Handball Federation-run Champions League, a competition with over 50 years of history. Barcelona has won the competition nine times, including five seasons on the bounce in the 1990s and 2000s. Other teams like THW Kiel, RK Vardar and Montpellier have also claimed the championship in recent years.

Domestic Leagues

While the results of the European club handball tournaments show that the domestic leagues in Germany and Spain are the best around, the competitions in several European countries are of a sufficiently high quality that bookmakers are happy to compile and trade markets on them. There are excellent leagues operating throughout Scandinavia, and handball is a rare team sport in which the betting turnover on women’s matches is similar to that of men’s games.

Do Your Research

Don’t read handball betting odds and bet without doing any research. Has one of the teams dominated previous meetings? Are they in good form? Will key players compete or are they nursing an injury? These are just a few of the factors you must take into consideration when betting on handball. Follow teams on social media and check handball betting websites for the latest updates.

Never Back a Draw

Although handball betting odds often make the draw look like a tempting bet, we urge you to avoid betting on a stalemate. The end-to-end nature of handball ensures lots of goals and matches rarely end in a draw. They don’t happen enough to warrant accepting the odds typically offered by bookmakers, so don’t get sucked into backing a draw.

Goalkeepers Are Key

One of the best handball betting tips we can give you is to put your faith in great goalkeepers. With most professional handball teams scoring between 20 and 35 points per match, having a good shot stopper guarding the net can prove key. You can profit by betting on the team with the best goalkeeper, or you can bet under on the totals market and hope for lots of saves.

First Half Totals Betting

Yes, it’s true that handball is a high-scoring team sport, but there is often a feeling out period in the first half. Neither team wants to concede first, and teams don’t usually pull their goalkeeper until the end of the second half. As casual fans of the sport rush to bet on over, experienced handball bettors explore the first half totals market and bet under if the odds make sense.