2026 World Cup Betting Review as Spain reign supreme

Read what bet365's Steve Freeth had to say in his 2026 World Cup betting review following Spain's 1-0 victory over Argentina.

Here is the original article on Bet365 site - "Courtesy of bet365 News".

Spain 1-0 Argentina

It certainly wasn't a classic, but I don't think there will be too many bookmakers complaining about Argentina's no-show and Spain finally putting the 2026 World Cup final to bed into extra time.

The two substitutes, Nico Williams and Ferran Torres, who replaced Baena and Oyarzabal, combined to seal the victory, with our Sub On Play On again coming to the fore. However, it was still our best result of the tournament.

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Enzo Fernandez was a 33/1 shot to see red and duly received his marching orders after a lunge at Pau Cubarsi, which helped Spain finally breakdown a dogged Argentina side.

2030 World Cup

Spain did start this tournament as 9/2 favourites, but some mediocre early performances saw them overtaken by France.

They certainly warmed to the task of being pre-tournament favourites and we are giving them that status again in 2030 - especially with them as one of the co-hosts

We've been made to pay by writing off Lionel Messi before this year's showpiece, and maybe we're taking a chance by going 12/1 about Argentina going one better in 2030, but surely even a superhuman Messi can't continue to pull the strings at a ripe old age of 43.

Fellow co-hosts Portugal might benefit from the departure of Roberto Martinez, as well as Ronaldo, while we're giving England an 8/1 quote as we wait for the dust to settle on another frustrating major tournament.

France 4-6 England

On Saturday, England drifted like a barge when the Bronze final team news finally dropped, going off at 10/3 versus France. However, it was a case of no Kane, no Bellingham, no problem with 33/1 first-goalscorer Declan Rice breaking the deadlock in the 3rd minute. Incredibly, it was 4-0 at half-time, and even more incredibly, we had a number of fivers and tenners on that outcome at 250/1.

Not only that, but we also had 29 pre-game wagers on Bukayo Saka scoring a hat-trick at 200/1, with the icing on the cake being a final 6-4 scoreline, which was traded at 250/1 In-Play. bet365 customers also benefitted from our Sub On Play On offer, with backers of Cherki, Doue and Eze also celebrating, despite not being on the pitch, having been replaced by goalscoring substitutes Dembele, Barcola and Bellingham.

Trading story of the 2026 World Cup

Tournament wise, we only really had one loser in the Outright market and that was Portugal with many - including yours truly - trusting Roberto Martinez to get it right, despite the added baggage of a certain Cristiano Ronaldo. The defeat to champions-in-waiting Spain made it plain sailing in that market from the last 16 stage.

It was far from plain sailing in the group stage because we lost money, but it could have been so much worse had Martinez/Ronaldo not ridden to the rescue, with Group K favourites Portugal failing to beat Colombia in the group decider and ruining a 156/1 12-fold of hot-pots.

Our worst World Cup result was England's 3-2 victory over Mexico in what was a thriller at the fortress Azteca Stadium. Jude Bellingham was gaining in popularity by the game, and his brace, along with a Harry Kane penalty hit us hard. With Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez also on the scoresheet for the hosts, it was a horrible result for us.

When the Bronze final team news broke on Saturday, there was a noticeable shift towards Kylian Mbappe in the Top Goalscorer market with the Frenchman cut from 10/11 into 4/6. Although his backers had a nervy first half, he showed his quality in the second period to shorten to 1/25. His only rival, Lionel Messi, was out to 12/1 at kick-off on Sunday night.

Award-wise, we saw an ‘out-of-sorts' Rodri drift to 66/1 in the Golden Ball market in the early stages of the tournament, but the cream rose to the top at the right time for his backers. He went off at 13/2, with Lionel Messi looking home and hosed at 1/12 at kick-off in New York.

I did get the Young Player award wrong. I questioned a trader's decision to further shortening Pau Cubarsi, who opened at 20/1, after another stellar performance. I questioned his profile and the lack of history of defenders lifting the trophy. So let's move on sharpish.

There was a lot of chatter before the start of this tournament, mainly from the British press, as to why David Raya wasn't starting for Spain, but Unai Simon has shown throughout why he is the No.1, with seven clean sheets, albeit behind a fantastic defence and the stopper was no bigger than 5/1 to finish with the Golden Glove.

Any odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.