A handicap in betting is a head start, in points or goals, given to one side so that both sides of the bet are close to even. The bet is settled on the final score after the handicap is added, so a team at -10.5 has to win by 11 or more, and a team at +10.5 covers unless it loses by 11 or more.
In American sports the handicap is called the point spread. Kansas City Chiefs at Miami Dolphins on Sunday, September 27, 2026, had Kansas City -10.5 at -115 and Miami +10.5 at -105 at DraftKings, as listed on ESPN on September 24.
How a handicap bet is settled
Add the handicap to that team’s score, then compare. If Kansas City wins 27-17, the 10-point margin falls short of 10.5 and Miami +10.5 wins the bet. If Kansas City wins 28-17, Kansas City -10.5 wins.
The price is set separately from the handicap. At -115, you risk $115 to win $100 on Kansas City; at -105, $100 on Miami wins $95.24. A half point, as in 10.5, means the bet cannot land on the number.
A whole number can. Los Angeles Chargers at Buffalo Bills the same Sunday had Buffalo -7 at -115. If Buffalo wins by exactly seven, the bet lands on the number. FanDuel’s Massachusetts house rules for American football, approved on March 27, 2025, say that where the handicap is a whole number, “bets are void and will be refunded where the score lands on that number.”
Why a handicap exists
A handicap turns a lopsided game into a two-sided bet. On the moneyline, Kansas City was -650: $100 wins $15.38. With the 10.5-point handicap at -115, the same $100 wins $86.96, because the bet now asks whether Kansas City wins big, not whether it wins.
Handicaps move like prices do. Kansas City opened at -7 in the same ESPN feed and was -10.5 by September 24, and Buffalo moved from -2.5 to -7. A bettor who took Kansas City -7 at the open needs an eight-point win; one who takes -10.5 now needs 11.
Handicaps in soccer
Soccer handicaps are counted in goals. Orlando City at Philadelphia Union in MLS on Saturday, September 26, had Philadelphia -1.5 at -105 and Orlando +1.5 at -135 at DraftKings.
Philadelphia -1.5 wins if Philadelphia wins by two or more goals. Orlando +1.5 wins if Orlando wins, draws, or loses by one. A $100 bet on Philadelphia -1.5 wins $95.24, against $41.67 for the same $100 on Philadelphia’s -240 moneyline.
A -0.5 handicap is the same question as “does this team win?”, with the draw removed as a separate result. New York City FC at Atlanta United the same night had Atlanta -0.5 at +115, next to an Atlanta moneyline of +120 and a draw at +250.
Asian and European handicaps
The Asian handicap uses whole, half and quarter goals, and a draw is never a result of its own. A quarter line splits your stake in two. The example below is a made-up illustration at even money (+100), not a price anyone posted:
| Line, $100 stake | Result | You get back |
|---|---|---|
| -0.25 | Your team wins | $200 |
| -0.25 | Draw | $50 |
| -0.25 | Your team loses | $0 |
| -0.75 | Wins by one goal | $150 |
| -0.75 | Wins by two or more | $200 |
At -0.25, half the stake sits on 0 and half on -0.5. A draw refunds the first $50 and loses the second. At -0.75, half sits on -0.5 and half on -1, so a one-goal win pays the first half and refunds the second.
The European handicap keeps the draw instead. A team at -1 in a European handicap that wins by exactly one goal produces a “handicap draw,” which is its own result with its own price. That is also a made-up illustration: the ESPN feed for these MLS games lists no European handicap market.
Choosing between the handicap and the moneyline
Take the handicap when the moneyline pays too little for the risk. Kansas City at -650 wins $15.38 per $100; at -10.5 it wins $86.96, and the cost is that a 10-point Kansas City win loses.
Take the moneyline on an underdog you think wins outright. Miami +10.5 at -105 wins $95.24 per $100, while Miami’s moneyline at +470 wins $470, so if you expect a Miami win, the handicap gives most of the payout away.
Handicap terms and related guides
“Covering” means beating the handicap. A team at -10.5 that wins by 14 covers; a team at +10.5 that loses by 7 covers too. A “push” is a result that lands on a whole-number handicap and is refunded, as in the FanDuel rule above.
The same word also names a person: a handicapper is someone who sets or sells picks, and our handicapper site reviews cover those services. For the margin of victory as its own bet, see winning margin betting; for handicaps that change during the game, see live betting; and for the rest of the vocabulary, see our betting terms from A to Z. This week’s games and lines are on our NFL predictions hub.