Many of the world’s footballing powerhouses will feature in the tournament and it looks set to be a fascinating battle between the favourites in the outright market. Each online bookmaker is providing their odds in accordance to each country’s chance of lifting the Jules Rimet Trophy and comparing the different prices is a great way of finding the extra value in the outright market. Our table compares the latest outright betting odds from the best online betting sites in the UK. Football fans are always keen to place their bets in plenty of time ahead of a major tournament and a popular bet among punters is the outright market – World Cup Winner. The outright market is always the most popular way of betting and most online betting sites in the UK have these priced up as soon as the qualification process has been confirmed. Here at BettingTop10, we take a closer look at the World Cup 2018 outright market. Which team will win the 2018 World Cup is a topic which is discussed throughout a number of workplaces and pubs across the country and many punters choose to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to selecting a winner of the tournament.
Twenty years since winning the World Cup at home, France are now presented with another chance of making it to a World Cup final for only the second time in their history. Didier Deschamps’ men have looked assured as they are able to adapt to any game plan thrown at them. It’s a joy to watch Pogba, Griezmann and Mbappe linking up and their unrivalled movement off the ball makes them a team capable of inflicting serious harm. Umtiti and Varane make up a French backline that bullies attackers but also have the means to pass it out gracefully when in trouble. That composed approach from the French defenders settles the entire side down and gives them the perfect platform to win games from. France are in with a real shout at Russia 2018 and their sensational squad will be all too aware of the reward lying in wait. William Hill has France at odds of 7/2 to win the World Cup.
It was two decades ago that Croatia witnessed the best footballing side that had ever played in their history and now, in 2018, tongues are wagging again as this side looks every bit as good as Davor Suker’s superstars. Back home in Croatia, this team is causing a stir, with many believing captain Modric will inspire his charges to the ultimate prize in football. Modric is the star man but he is ably supported by wonderful players in Rakitic and Mandzukic who give the Croatians superb balance in the final third. It is the Barcelona man Rakitic’s composed passing and vision off the ball that has given Croatia the edge over their opponents when competing in a tightly contested game. Mandzukic has proven he can score on just about any stage in the world and he may well be the player to send Croatia to their first ever World Cup final. William Hill has the Croats at only 6/1 odds of winning the tournament, which tells you how good a team they have.
The outright market is one of the simplest to understand and it is simply a case of predicting the 2018 World Cup winners. This requires your selected team to progress through each of the rounds and triumph in the final. The various stages of the tournament will undoubtedly throw up a few challenges and very few outright selections land without a few scares along the way. Group Stages Sides have been drawn into groups of four (A-H) and the top two from each of these sections will progress to the next round. Every side will play each other once at a pre-selected venue in Russia. If two teams are tied on points at the end of the group stage, the team who have scored the most goals will progress. Knock-Out Rounds Teams who progress from the group stage will be drawn against one another in the knock-out rounds. For example, the winner of Group A vs the runner-up of Group B. These are staged as one-off 90 minute fixtures with the winner progressing through to the next round. If it’s a draw, an additional 30 minutes will be played. A penalty shoot-out will follow and this can be one of the cruellest ways to watch your outright selection exit the competition. Quarter-Finals Similar to the knock-out rounds, these will feature the final eight teams left standing in the competition and may be decided in extra time or by a penalty shoot-out. Semi-Finals There is a huge prize at stake each of the four sides who have been consistent enough to progress to the semi-finals. The two winners will book themselves a place in the World Cup final whilst the remaining two will compete in a third-place play-off. Final This showpiece event which takes place on the 15th July will help determine who will be the 2018 World Cup winners. It can be heart-breaking for the opposition but if you’ve backed the winner, it can be a hugely triumphant occasion. Each-Way bets will pay first two places (1/2 odds) so if you’ve backed a bigger-priced side and they’ve reached the final, it can still be a lucrative outcome.
France and Croatia have been jostling for favouritism in the outright market but the South American side have to be favoured to land their sixth World Cup title. They have been exceptional under coach Tite and they will be determined to put a torrid 2014 tournament behind them. The Samba Boys have got a decent probability of becoming the 2018 World Cup winners and with stars such as Neymar, Phillipe Coutinho and Gabriel Jesus, they possess plenty of ability. France have the greatest strength in depth with players such as Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe and Ngolo Kante all at their disposal. Les Blues reached the final of Euro 2016 and they always progress deep into these competitions. Didier Deschamps must find a way of keeping his squad content during the month-long event but they have a great chance of reaching the latter stages.
It is incredibly easy to place an outright bet on the World Cup 2018. Every online betting site will have a huge number of markets but the outright is always the most popular. Once you’ve placed your bet, simply sit back and wait for the tournament to get to the late stages. NEVER bet on a team if there are any signs of disharmony in the camp. If there have been rumours of a dressing-room divide or one player has been sent home or forced to train individually, this isn’t good for morale and can be a sign of a negative atmosphere. Some teams are brilliant in qualifiers but consistently fail to perform in tournaments and this mind-set can be difficult to shift. This is something else to consider.
There are a number of tournament bets which can be placed with the majority of online betting sites. Top Goalscorer markets are always extremely popular and can be intrinsically linked to the outright betting. If a side is expected to progress to the final, their strikers will have more opportunities to find the back of the net. World Cup punters can also predict the stage of elimination for each individual side. Some teams routinely exit at the Quarters stage and huge prices are available for narrowing it down. These markets allow bettors to predict whether sides will make it out of the group stage, to the semi-finals or even to reach the final.
There have been eight different winners of the World Cup with Brazil having been victorious on five different occasions. Their last success came in 2002. Uruguay were the first champions and they added a second in 1950. Brazil were the last side to win successive World Cups when they wrapped up back-to-back tournaments in 1958 and 1962. Italy are the only other side to have secured back-to-back successes at the World Cup. Five World Cup finals have needed extra time or penalties to separate the two sides including 2010 and 2014 with both games finishing 0-0 after 90 minutes.
