Prepare for the throw-off here at William Hill as we’ll bring you the latest handball betting odds for one of the most popular sports in mainland Europe.

International handball may reach its highest global profile during an Olympic year, but with highly-competitive domestic leagues scattered all over the world, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved with handball betting every week throughout the season.

You’ll find thrilling weekly action throughout the top men’s and women’s leagues from all over Europe, including Germany’s Bundesliga, France’s Division 1, Sweden’s Elitserien, Hungary’s NB1, Poland’s Superliga, Spain’s Liga Asobal, Russia’s Super League and the Danish Handboldligaen.

On top of the domestic competitions, the best handball sides also compete regularly in top European tournaments, with the EHF Champions League deemed the pinnacle team achievement in both men’s and women’s club handball.

Supplementing the EHF Champions League is the EHF Cup, the European Handball Federation’s second-tier competition, with the EHF Challenge Cup completing the trio, and ensuring plenty of opportunities for Europe’s professional handballers to show their worth on the continental stage.

The Club World Cup, organised by the International Handball Federation and also known as the IHF Super Globe, pits all continental champions against each other every year in a bid to crown the world’s greatest club side.

Our handball betting options also comprises the best in international handball too, with a wide-range of markets available for the European Championships, as well as the biennial World Handball Championship – aka the Handball World Cup –+ involving 24 of the world’s best handball teams in both the men’s and women’s game.

Every four years the eyes of the world land upon the sport with the top prize coming in the shape of an Olympic gold medal. You can be sure that when the quadrennial showpiece next comes around, we’ll have handball betting odds in abundance.

On top of the outright handball markets, allowing you to bet on the teams who you think will win each tournament, our handball betting odds are spread amongst a range of markets.

Individual match betting includes handicap betting handball, along with the usual match betting options of home/draw/away, and a market on the total goals scored in games, offered in the over/under format.

Given the frenetic, physical and end-to-end nature of professional handball, bettors at William Hill can join in with the thrill of a 60-minute match by getting involved in the in-

play options with handball live betting available for all top-level games, live from throw-off until the final whistle.

Along with live match betting, live in-play markets include match handicap, match alternate goals, match total goals, first and second half goals, match winning margin and match goals odd/even. You can also bet on the total goals and total goals odd/even for each participating team.

Our in-play options ensure you get more control on handball live betting, especially as our Cash In My Bet button allows you to settle your bet before the game is finished, meaning you can take advantage of the moment your bet is in a winning position.

Handball’s top teams

If you’re on the lookout for some useful background info on the sport’s most successful teams before considering your next bet on handball, then listen in close.

In Handball Champions League, which sees Europe’s best sides come together in an initial group phase followed by head-to-head knockouts, Barcelona have traditionally been the most dominant in the men’s competition since its inception in 1993

Although in recent seasons the trophy has been entertainingly shared between a diverse selection of nations including France, Macedonia, Poland and Germany.

Meanwhile the women’s Champions League saw Spartak Kiev historically dominant in the 1970s and 1980s, though recent seasons have seen Gyori ETO KC from Hungary replace them as the team to beat in Europe.

Internationally, few in the men’s game were able to compete with the all-conquering French team since the turn of the century, with Les Bleus claiming Olympic, World and European gold medals over the past decade.

However, in more recent times, strong representation from Denmark, Germany and Spain in particular have democratised proceedings somewhat. The international handball scene represents an exciting mix of outright handball betting opportunities.

The women’s game has proven to be just as thrilling, with Olympic golds shared between Russia, Norway, Denmark and South Korea since the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia dominated the first few tournaments following the sport’s Olympic introduction in 1976.

There’s a similar spread in the World Cup history books, with France, Norway, Brazil and Russia enjoying success, though the European Championships have a distinctly Scandinavian dominance, with Norway and Denmark’s titles jointly reaching double figures.

Handball betting guide

If you’re looking to bet on handball action, whether in domestic, European or international action, then there are a few key facts you could do with having in your locker before you place your bet.

When it comes to the basics, a handball match lasts 60 minutes in total, comprising two halves of 30 minutes. Each team includes seven players - six outfield and a goalkeeper – and the winner is the side who has scored the most goals come the final whistle.

And the reason handball is such a popular sport all over the globe is that there is no shortage when it comes to goals. Games tend to be high-scoring, end-to-end encounters, with the combined total goals regularly surpassing the 50 mark in each game – so unlike in football, you don’t need to worry about scoreless bore draws.

The same applies to prolific individual goalscorers, with several top tournament goalscorers in the most recent EHF Champions League tournaments having rocketed into three figures.

It makes the total goals market a popular one, particularly for those who aren’t looking to back a particular team in the game.

But for bettors who do enjoy backing one team over the other, then remember to not only take into account current and historical form, but also the latest team news and injury updates.

Just as in many team sports, handball teams often have an over-reliance on their best players – and when they are missing from the starting line-up, their team’s chances of winning can be affected too.

For the latest handball betting odds and markets, check out our handball markets here.

#YourOdds

If you can’t find the handball bet that you’re looking for, then fear not for there’s always a chance you can find exactly the bet you’re after on the William Hill #YourOdds page, listing the individual bets and multiples that have been requested by other bettors looking at the same markets as you are.

And if you still can’t find it there? Then get in touch to request your own handball #YourOdds, by tweeting us at @WilliamHill.