World Cup Betting UK 2022
If you have been thinking about World Cup betting in 2022, you’ve come to the right place! From this page you can find all of the best World Cup betting offers and sites for the tournament in Qatar this winter.
Bojoko also covers the best World Cup betting odds on this page, to help you choose World Cup bets that can profit you the best. Remember to also check out our team previews and FIFA World Cup deals for betting sites available exclusively for the 2022 tournament.
Best World Cup betting sites
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PLAY HERE » New UK players only, 18+ Minimum deposit for bonus: £20 Qualifying amount of bets: £20 Max bonus amount: £40 free bet Wagering requirement: 1x Minimum odds: 1/2 (1.50) Stake not included in free bet winnings Skrill deposits excluded Max conversion £200 Full and Bonus apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £40 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £20 Wagering requirements 1x (B) Live streams No Return to player % 90% 21LuckyBet is one of the latest brands in the UK. The betting site, also part of the ProgressPlay family of products, was launched in July 2022. 21LuckyBet offers a very functio... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Minimum deposit for bonus: £5 Max bonus amount: £50 To qualify for bonus, you need to place bets to the value of your deposit Minimum odds for qualifying bets: 1/5 (1.20) Apple pay, Google pay, PayPal or Paysafecard deposit do not qualify for this offer Bet credits are non-withdrawable Winnings from bet credits are withdrawable money Only net winnings from bets made with bet credits will be returned to player Time to settle bet credits: 30 days Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £50 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £5 Wagering requirements 1x (B) Live streams Yes Return to player % 94% If you’re looking for a one-stop-shop for all of your gambling fun, Bet365 is the place to be. Offering an enormous spread of sports, casino and virtual bett... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » New UK players only, 18+ Minimum deposit to get offer: £10 Bet £10 with minimum odds 1/2, stake not returned The free bet will automatically be activated after first bet is settled Free bet is valid for seven days Max winnings with free bet £200 1X wager the winnings Any player can receive up to one sport welcome bonus on the Progressplay Network Full terms and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £30 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements 1x (D) Live streams No Return to player % 92% Are you looking for a new betting experience with one of the UK’s most recently launched bookies? Then you have come to the right place! Today we are introducing a freshly launc... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » New UK players only, 18+ 50% back as free bet up to £25 Must have a minimum of 3 bets of £10 at odds of even (2.00) or greater on first day First day losses equals all losing stakes less all returns The day finishes at 23:59 Free bets to be credited within 24 hours Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £25 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements No Live streams No Return to player % 94% Betgoodwin is a new online betting site by the widely known Goodwin Racing Ltd. Known by their telephone betting service, they have launched their own online betting site in Feb... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Minimum deposit for the offer: £10 Maximum bonus ammount: £40 (£30 free bets, £10 casino bonus) To qualify for a bonus, you need to place bets to the minimum value of £10 Minimum odds for qualifying bets: 1/2 (1.50) Free bets will be credited as three separate £ tokens. Free bets must be claimed within seven days of your qualifying bet settling Free bets are valid only for 7 days PayPal, Muchbetter, PaysafeCard, Neteller or Skrill deposit do not qualify for this offer Full and Bonus apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £30 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements 1x (D) Live streams Yes Return to player % 94% 888Sports, launched in 1997, is one of the UK's best-known betting sites. The UKGC licensed brand offers an immersive betting experience on a safe platform and, of course, tax-f... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Offer is only available for new UK, Irish or Maltese customers To get the £30 in free bets, you must make a first deposit of at least £10 Only deposits made with a card or Trustly are eligible for this promotion Free bets are available to use in denominations of £10, £20 or £30 Stake of free bets will not be returned when your bet wins Free bets will expire 90 days after being credited Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £30 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements No Live streams No Return to player % 98% The mobile only sporting app, SBK, operated by Smarkets launched in August 2019. This already lends this platform credibility, as Smarkets is a well-known sp... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Only for new customers, 18+ Minimum deposit: £20 Deposit must be made using the bonus code: b20g20 Maximum bonus: £20 Free bets are valid for 7 days If you have not received bonus, please contact to customer service Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £20 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £20 Wagering requirements No Live streams No Return to player % 93% Rhino.bet is a relatively new gaming site launched in 2021 with a modern and well-functioning betting menu. For instance, the site makes it simple to locate all upcoming horse a... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » The minimum deposit for the bonus is £5 Max bonus amount: £20 (1x£20) Free bet can be used on any sport You cannot "Cashout" your free bet Winnings with free bet are withdrawable Bonus is available only for Visa & Mastercard deposits Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £20 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £5 Wagering requirements 1x (D) Live streams Yes Return to player % 95% Coral is one of the best know companies in the United Kingdom's sports betting industry. This bookmaker saw daylight for the first time in 1926. Almost 100 years later, Coral ow... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Minimum deposit for bonus: £10 Max bonus amount: £40 (4x £10) To qualify for a bonus, you need to place bets to the minimum value of £10 Minimum odds for qualifying bets: 1/5 (1.20) Winnings from free bets are withdrawable money Free bets will expire in 30 days Full and Bonus apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £40 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements 1x (D) Live streams Yes Return to player % 94% William Hill is one of the well-known and oldest betting sites online. The brand was born back in 1934 and is now almost 90 years old. William Hill has maintained its position a... Read review »
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PLAY HERE » Only for +18 UK residents (including Northern Ireland). Only for new Betfred customers. Deposit a minimum of £10 via a debit card only. Place your first bet of £10 in one bet at odds of 1/1 (2.0) or greater on any sports market. Get a first bonuses within 10 hours of your first bet being settled. Get a second bonus within 5 days of your qualifyingt bet being settled. Full and Bonus terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
Read review » 1st deposit bonus £60 free bet Minimum deposit for bonus £10 Wagering requirements 1x (D) Live streams Yes Return to player % 93% Betfred is one of the UK's biggest and best-known betting brands. A gentleman called Fred Done founded Betfred already in 1967. Nowadays the brand has hundreds of betting shops ... Read review »
World Cup betting offers 2022 - Get a free bet for the world cup
Below you can find the best World Cup betting offers available for the 2022 tournament. If you want a free bet, world cup bet offers are your best choice, since nearly all of the best UK bookmakers are offering them for new players to enjoy.
- Don't miss - Ronaldo next club odds
This list will be updated once special world cup bet offers are announced closer to the tournament, so stay tuned!
Betway World Cup offer - Get £5 free bets for the world cup
Betway has become the first betting brand to launch their World Cup betting offer, with their Quest for Qatar campaign running all the way until the 18th of November.
In addition to this, you will of course also be eligible to the normal welcome offer, which is a matched free bet between £5-£30 for all new players. The qualifying bet for the matched bet must have a minimum of 3+ legs on football and horse racing markets, with the acca having overall odds of over 2/1.
In the Quest for Qatar each week players will be eligible to get a £5 free bet for spending £25 on trebles, accumulators and Bet Builders during the week.
To get involved with this offer you simply need to opt in for the campaign and spend your £25 between Saturday and Friday each week. You will receive each £5 free bet on the Saturday after the week.
Join the Quest for Qatar here and get a £30 free bet! »Star Sports World Cup offer - up to £300 in free World cup bets!
Star Sports has given their players an incredible Qatar World Cup offer to enjoy - a free bet up to £50! This offer can be reedemed by both old and new players, and all you need to participate is a bet on the World Cup winner.
This bet needs to be an outright World Cup winner at Star Sports, and if the team you have chosen fails to make the quarter-finals, you will receive a matched free bet to your outright winner bet up to £50.
Your outright winner bet must be placed before the first game of the tournament, so click on the link below to get to Star Sports and enjoy their World Cup betting offer quick before kickoff!
In addition to this, by going to the "News" section of the site you can also find a giveaway of a £250 free bet if you can guess the England starting eleven against Iran most accurately!
Win up to £300 in free bets for the World Cup here! »World Cup betting odds
At Bojoko, we want to help our readers find the best betting sites that provide you with the option of always placing your World Cup bets with the best odds. Here we have gathered some of the most interesting World Cup 2022 odds for you to enjoy.
Our team has done research to find out the best bookie for each bet type, but every odd listed here is not necessarily the highest you can find. However, in general the lists below provide you with the best choice of bookmaker for each kinds of bets you want to place.
Of course, there might be some bookies from our new betting sites 2022 -list that might offer some solitary top odds for a market, but with World Cup bets the biggest bookmakers are usually the best choice.
World cup odds updated today (05.12.2022).
World Cup winner odds
Here you can find the World Cup winner odds updated before and throughout the tournament. The current bookmaker we have chosen for our odds is Unibet, who consistently trumps the competition on World Cup odds to win for almost all the countries.
- Brazil - 49/20
- France - 25/5
- England - 13/2
- Spain - 15/2
- Argentina - 27/5
- Netherlands - 14/1
- Portugal - 14/1
- Croatia - 40/1
- Switzerland - 80/1
- Morocco - 90/1
- Japan - 75/1
- South Korea - 200/1
England World Cup betting odds
Below you can find listed all of the England World Cup betting odds in 2022 Bojoko could find. There's plenty to bet on while following the three lions, so let's see what's on offer!
- England to win World Cup - 13/2 @Unibet
- England to finnish runner-up - 7 @William Hill
World Cup top goalscorer odds
Here you can find an updated list of World Cup top goalscorer odds from Unibet. We have done research and found that the Nordic bookie currently has the best top goalscorer odds for the World Cup at the moment, so with these odds you will be getting value for your money:
- Harry Kane - 40/1
- Kylian Mbappe - 13/20
- Olivier Giroud - 14/1
- Marcus Rashford - 16/1
- Lionel Messi - 11/1
- Alvaro Morata - 14/1
- Cody Gakpo - 22/1
- Bruno Fernandes - 50/1
- Neymar - 100/1
- Cristiano Ronaldo - 40/1
- Richarlison - 16/1
- Ferran Torres - 33/1
- Bukayo Saka - 30/1
- Julian Alvarez - 35/1
Don't miss our full article on World Cup Golden Boot odds 2022, where the situation will be analyzed in depth closer to the tournament.
Get top goalscorer odds at Unibet here >> »World Cup Golden Ball odds
In addition to the top goalscorer, World Cup Golden Ball winner odds are also extremely popular. This bet type often isn’t the easiest to predict even for the bookies, since stats aren’t quite as big of a help, and the jury could have strong opinions on some players that the public doesn’t know about.
It’s hard to say whether a goalkeeper has outperformed a striker or a defender a midfielder across the whole tournament, but usually the player of the tournament has at least reached the semi-finals, so keep that in mind with your bets and don’t choose star players from severe underdogs.
- Kylian Mbappe - 23/20 @Unibet
- Lionel Messi - 4/1 @Unibet
- Neymar - 50 @Parimatch
- Richarlison - 20 @Unibet
- Jude Bellingham - 20 @Parimatch
- Bruno Fernandes - 25 @Parimatch
- Vinicius Jr. - 25 @Parimatch
- Cristiano Ronaldo - 33 @Parimatch
World Cup group odds
Below you can find listed the World Cup group odds that are available at bookies online:
Group A
Group winner:
The Netherlands won the group.
To qualify:
The Netherlands and Senegal qualified.
World Cup betting - Loads of options available
When it comes to World Cup, there are more betting options available than for perhaps any other sporting event. For football bettors, this is the golden opportunity people have been waiting for, and these tournaments offer a unique chance to make significant profits.
But what kinds of World Cup betting options do we have? As you can probably guess, all regular football betting options for a single match will be available as usual, but there are also plenty of special World Cup bets to be enjoyed
- Outright winner - World Cup outright odds can be found at all self-respecting bookmakers, and these are of course odds to win the World Cup for a single country
- Match bets - These are regular bets on matches at the World Cup. Bets can range from normal home win / draw / away win bets, bets on the amount of goals, cards, corners or even throw-ins to player and live bets
- Player bets - All kinds of player bets are available for the World Cup. Some of these are the amount of goals, assists and yellow/red cards a player will get. For some more prominent players there can even be more specific ones, like passes and fouls, and player bets can mostly be found on star players in general
- Tournament bets - Tournament bets are generally concerning the performance of a team, especially how far they’ll get in the tournament. Others can include the total amount of goals in the tournament etc.
- Group bets - Group bets are World Cup bets that are limited to a single group. The most common ones out of these are bets on the winner of the group and who will qualify, but at the best bookies you can find others like the amount of goals in all the matches in a group etc.
World Cup 2022 schedule
Here you can find the World Cup 2022 schedule in full. All match times at Bojoko are in UK time, so don’t worry about time differences.
5.12. World Cup matches (Monday)
3pm - Japan vs Croatia (Match 53)
7pm - Brazil vs South Korea (Match 54)
2022 World Cup knockout bracket
2022 World Cup groups
Below you can find the World Cup groups 2022 along with a quick examination of each team. We have also covered some betting tips on some of the teams and our own predictions of the result of each team in the tournament.
Group A
Qatar
Qatar qualified for the World Cup automatically as hosts, and coach Felix Sanchez has a real challenge on his hands to prevent embarrassment in these finals. Far weaker than any other team in the tournament, even a solitary point can be seen as a resounding success in group A.
- Star Player - Hassan Al-Haydos
- Manager - Felix Sanchez Bas
- Last World Cup finish: 2022 is their first tournament
- Expected result - Group stage
Qatar World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Yousuf Hassan (Al-Gharafa)
Meshaal Barsham (Al-Sadd)
Saad Al Sheeb (Al-Sadd)
Defenders:
Homam Al Amin (Al-Gharafa)
Jassim Gabir (Al-Arabi)
Abdelkarim Hassan (Al-Sadd)
Boualem Khoukhi (Al-Sadd)
Bassam Al Rawi (A-Duhail)
Tarek Salman (Al-Sadd)
Musaab Khidir (Al-Sadd)
Pedro Miguel (Al-Sadd)
Midfielders:
Ismaeel Mohammad (Al-Duhail)
Abdulaziz Hatim (Al-Rayyan)
Karim Boudiaf (Al-Duhail)
Mustafa Meshaal (Al-Sadd)
Salem Al Hajri (Al-Sadd)
Mohammed Waad (Al-Saad)
Assim Madibo (Al-Duhail)
Ali Asad (Al-Sadd)
Forwards:
Mohammed Muntari (Al-Duhail)
Almoez Ali (Al-Duhail)
Akram Afif (Al-Sadd)
Khalid Muneer (Al-Wakrah)
Hassan Al Haydos (Al-Sadd)
Ahmed Alaa (Al-Gharafa)
Naif Al Hadhrami (Al-Rayyan)
Ecuador could be a real team for the neutrals, as they scored as many goals as Argentina in qualifying, with 4-2 and 6-1 wins over Chile and Colombia highlights of their qualifying campaign. Bets on plenty of goals are therefore definitely smart, with the Ecuadorians’ defence being a definite question mark. Likely to fight Senegal for the second qualifying place.
- Star Player - Enner Valencia
- Manager - Gustavo Alfaro
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage (2014)
- Expected result - Group stage
Ecuador World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Moises Ramirez (Indepediente del Valle)
Hernan Galindez (Aucas)
Alexander Dominguez (Liga de Quito)
Defenders:
William Pacho (Royal Antwerp FC)
Felix Torres (Santos Laguna)
Robert Arboleda (Sao Paulo)
Jackson Porozo (Troyes)
Diego Palacios (Los Angeles FC)
Xavier Arreaga (Seattle Sounders)
Piero Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen)
Angelo Preciado (Gent)
Pervis Estupinan (Brighton)
Midfielders:
Jeremy Sarmiento (Brighton)
Romario Ibarra (Pachuca)
Ayrton Preciado (Santos Laguna)
Angel Mena (Leon)
Gonzalo Plata (Valladolid)
Carlos Gruezo (Augsburg)
Jhegson Mendez (Los Angeles FC)
Alan Franco (Talleres)
Jose Cifuentes (Los Angeles FC)
Moises Caicedo (Brighton)
Forwards:
Kevin Rodriguez (Imbabura SC)
Djorkaeff Reasco (Newell's Old Boys)
Michael Estrada (Cruz Azul)
Enner Valencia (Fenerbache)
In many other groups Senegal would be an underdog to reach the knockout stages, but in group A there’s a good chance the Sadio Mane- and Kalidou Koulibaly -led Africans will end up advancing. Qatar and Ecuador should be wins for the “Lions of Teranga”, and even a group win could be possible with an upset against the Netherlands.
- Star Player - Sadio Mane
- Manager - Aliou Cissé
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Round of 16
Senegal World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Edouard Mendy (Chelsea)
Alfred Gomis (Stade Rennes)
Seny Dieng (Queens Park Rangers)
Defenders:
Youssuf Sabaly (Real Betis)
Formose Mendy (Amiens)
Kalidou Koulibaly (Chelsea)
Ismail Jakobs (Monaco)
Abdou Diallo (RB Leipzig)
Pape Abou Cisse (Olympiakos)
Fode Ballo Toure (AC Milan)
Midfielders:
Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham Hotspur)
Moustapha Name (Pafos FC)
Nampalys Mendy (Leicester City)
Mamdou Loum (Reading)
Cheikhou Kouyate (Nottingham Forest)
Pape Gueye (Olympique Marseille)
Idrissa Gana Gueye (Everton)
Krepin Diatta (Monaco)
Pathe Ismael Ciss (Rayo Vallecano)
Forwards:
Ismaila Sarr (Watford)
Sadio Mane (Bayern Munich)
Ilimane Ndiaye (Sheffield United)
Nicolas Jackson (Villareal)
Bamba Dieng (Olympique Marseille)
Famara Diedhiou (Alanyaspor)
Boulaye Dia (Salernitana)
The Netherlands make their return to the World Cup after their disastrous qualifying campaign for the 2018 tournament. The high-flying Dutch averaged over 3 goals per game in qualifying, and have not lost since Louis van Gaal returned to the helm.
With not too many star names to rely upon, a run up to the semi-finals might be unlikely, but this Dutch team definitely have what it takes to destroy teams weaker than them, so high-scoring matches in the group stage can be expected for bettors.
- Star Player - Virgil van Dijk
- Manager - Louis van Gaal
- Last World Cup finish: 3rd (2014)
- Expected result - Quarter-finals
Netherlands preliminary World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Remko Pasveer (Ajax)
Justin Bijlow (Feyenoord)
Andries Noppert (Heerenveen)
Defenders:
Daley Blind (Ajax)
Nathan Ake (Manchester City)
Matthijs de Ligt (Bayen Munich)
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Jurrien Timber (Ajax)
Tyrell Malacia (Manchester United)
Jeremie Frimpong (Bayer Leverkusen)
Denzel Dumfries (Inter Milan)
Stefan de Vrij (Inter Milan)
Midfielders:
Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona)
Kenneth Taylor (Ajax)
Xavi Simons (PSV Eindhoven)
Teun Koopmeiners (Atalanta)
Davy Klaassen (Ajax)
Marten de Roon (Atalanta)
Steven Berghuis (Ajax)
Forwards:
Memphis Depay (Barcelona)
Luuk de Jong (PSV Eindhoven)
Steven Bergwijn (Ajax)
Wout Wegohorst (Besiktas)
Noa Lang (Club Brugge)
Vincent Janssen (Royal Antwerp)
Cody Gakpo (PSV Eindhoven)
Group B
England come into the World Cup with sky-high expectations like usual, but recently form has eluded the Three Lions, culminating in the 0-4 drubbing at home against Hungary in June. However, with the recent Euros and last World Cup bringing 2nd & 4th place finishes, anything less than a spot in the semi-finals would be considered a disappointment.
Much will depend on whether Gareth Southgate’s men are able to solve the goalscoring problems that have plagued them in the year leading up to the tournament. Harry Kane has been on too heavily, but if he can bring his qualifying form (12 goals in 10 games) to Qatar, it just might be coming home…
- Star Player - Harry Kane
- Manager - Gareth Southgate
- Last World Cup finish: 4th
- Expected result - Semi-finals+
England World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Jordan Pickford (Everton)
Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)
Nick Pope (Newcastle United)
Defenders:
John Stones (Manchester City)
Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
Luke Shaw (Manchester United)
Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
Eric Dier (Tottenham)
Conor Coady (Everton)
Kieran Trippier (Newcastle)
Ben White (Arsenal)
Midfielders:
Jordan Henderson (Liverpool)
Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund)
Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City)
Mason Mount (Chelsea)
Conor Gallagher (Chelsea)
James Maddison (Leicester City)
Declan Rice (West Ham)
Forwards:
Harry Kane (Tottenham)
Raheem Sterling (Chelsea)
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
Phil Foden (Manchester City)
Jack Grealish (Manchester City)
Callum Wilson (Newcastle)
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
Wales have been handed a fairly favourable draw at this World Cup, and with a fully-firing Gareth Bale progression to the knockout stages is definitely a possibility. Holding Belgium to a draw at home in qualification was impressive, and they managed to edge out Ukraine for a place in these finals at the playoffs. England v Wales is always a cracker, and plenty of goals are usually expected in games involving the Red Dragons.
- Star Player - Gareth Bale
- Manager - Rob Page
- Last World Cup finish: Quarter-finals (1958)
- Expected result - Round of 16/Group stage
Wales World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Wayne Hennessey (Nottingham Forest)
Adam Davies (Sheffield United)
Danny Ward (Leicester City)
Defenders:
Ben Davies (Tottenham)
Connor Robers (Burnley)
Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest)
Chris Gunter (AFC Wimbledon)
Ethan Ampadu (Chelsea)
Chris Mepham (Bournemouth)
Joe Rodon (Tottenham)
Tom Lockyer (Luton Town)
Ben Cabango (Swansea City)
Midfielders:
Joe Allen (Swansea City)
Harry Wilson (Fulham)
Rubin Colwill (Cardiff City)
Aaron Ramsey (Nice)
Jonny Williams (Swindon Town)
Joe Morrell (Portsmouth)
Dylan Levitt (Dundee United)
Matthew Smith (MK Dons)
Sorba Thomas (Huddersfield)
Forwards:
Gareth Bale (Los Angeles FC)
Daniel James (Leeds United)
Brennan Johnson (Nottingham Forest)
Mark Harris (Cardiff City)
Kieffer Moore (Bournemouth)
USA didn’t cover themselves in glory while qualifying for the 2022 World Cup, barely making it straight through to Qatar. However, a favourable group draw sees them with a good chance of advancing, and their game with Wales will most likely be crucial in determining the second team to make the playoffs.
- Star Player - Christian Pulisic
- Manager - Gregg Berhalter
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16 (2014)
- Expected result - Round of 16/Group stage
USA World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Matt Turner (Arsenal)
Sean Johnson (New York City)
Ethan Horvath (Luton Town)
Defenders:
Sergino Dest (AC Milan)
DeYandre Yedlin (Inter Miami)
Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC)
Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Antonee Robinson (Fulham)
Tim Ream (Fulham)
Shaq Moore (Nashville SC)
Aaron Long (NY Red Bulls)
Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic)
Midfielders:
Tyler Adams (Leeds United)
Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders)
Yunus Musah (Valencia)
Weston McKennie (Juventus)
Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo)
Kellyn Acosta (Los Angeles FC)
Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United)
Forwards:
Christian Pulisic (Chelsea)
Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund)
Josh Sargent (Norwich City)
Haji Wright (Antalyaspor)
Tim Weah (Lille)
Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders)
Jesus Ferreira (FC Dallas)
Iran are on paper the weakest team in Group B, but don’t count them out! Dragan Skocic’s men took top spot in qualifying in a group with South Korea, so upsets in at least single games are definitely possible, even if getting to the playoffs seems like a long shot. Defence is the Iranian’s strong suit, with only 3 goals conceded in 10 qualifying games.
- Star Player - Ehsan Hajsafi
- Manager - Dragan Skocic
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Iran World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Amir Abedzadeh (Ponferradina)
Payam Niazmand (Sepahan)
Hossein Hosseini (Esteghal)
Alireza Beiranvand (Persepolis)
Defenders:
Ehsan Hajisafi (AEK)
Milad Mohammadi (AEK)
Sadegh Moharrami (Dinamo Zagreb)
Majid Hosseini (Kayserispor)
Mortza Pouraliganji (Persepolis)
Shoja Khalilzadeh (Al Ahili SC)
Hossein Kananizadegan (Al Ahli SC)
Abolfazl Jalali (Esteghal)
Ramin Rezaeian (Sepahan)
Midfielders:
Saman Ghoddos (Brentford)
Ali Gholizadeh (Charleroi)
Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Feyenoord)
Mehdi Torabi (Persepolis)
Vahid Amiri (Persepolis)
Rouzbeh Cheshmi (Esteghlal)
Ali Karimi (Kayserispor)
Ahmad Nourollahi (Shabab Al Ahli)
Saeid Ezatolahi (Vejle Boldklub)
Forwards:
Mehdi Taremi (Porto)
Karim Ansarifard (Omonia)
Sardar Azmoun (Bayer Leverkusen)
Group C
2022 will likely be the last World Cup that Argentina will have Lionel Messi in their ranks, and the former best player in the world will be doing everything he can to emulate Diego Maradona and lift the World Cup for the South Americans.
Only a victory in group C is to be expected, but with offensive star power like this their offence has been slightly lacklustre in recent times. Facing tough defences in this group, surprise draws or even defeats aren’t out of the question, but winning the group should still be a formality.
- Star Player - Lionel Messi
- Manager - Lionel Scaloni
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Quarter-finals
Argentina World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
Geronimo Rulli (Villareal)
Franco Armani (River Plate)
Defenders:
Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon)
Cristian Romero (Tottenham)
German Pezzella (Real Betis)
Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla)
Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid)
Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United)
Juan Foyth (Villareal)
Marcos Acuna (Sevilla)
Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica)
Midfielders:
Leandro Paredes (Juventus)
Guido Rodriquez (Real Betis)
Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen)
Alexis MacAllister (Brighton)
Alejandro Gomez (Sevilla)
Enzo Fernandez (Benfica)
Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid)
Forwards:
Lionel Messi (PSG)
Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
Angel Di Maria (Juventus)
Paulo Dybala (AS Roma)
Julian Alvarez (Manchester City)
Joaquin Correa (Inter Milan)
Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina)
Mexico will live and die with their defence in Qatar, as they only conceded more than once on two occasions across 14 games in qualifying. However, the offensive stars of qualifying teams like Canada and the USA pale in comparison to the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi at these finals, but a place in the last 16 is definitely a possibility.
- Star Player - Andres Guadardo
- Manager - Gerardo Martino
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Round of 16/Group stage
Mexico World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Guillermo Ochoa (Club America)
Rodolfo Cota (Leon)
Alfredo Talavera (Juarez)
Defenders:
Jesus Gallardo (Monterrey)
Gerardo Arteaga (Genk)
Cesar Montes (Monterrey)
Hector Moreno (Monterrey)
Johan Vasquez (Cremonese)
Nestor Araujo (Club America)
Jorge Sanchez (Ajax)
Midfielders:
Luis Romo (Monterrey)
Orbelin Pineda (AEK Athens)
Edson Alvarez (Ajax)
Luis Chavez (Pachuca)
Erick Gutierrez (PSV)
Charly Rodriguez (Cruz Azul)
Hector Herrera (Houston Dynamo)
Andres Guardado (Real Betis)
Forwards:
Rogelio Funes Mori (Monterrey)
Henry Martin (Club America)
Uriel Antuna (Cruz Azul)
Roberto Alvarado (Guadalajara)
Raul Jimenez (Wolves)
Alexis Vega (Guadalajara)
Hirving Lozano (Napoli)
Poland live and die at the hands of Robert Lewandowski. If he is firing like during their qualifying campaign (9 goals in 9 games), they could sneak through the groups, but otherwise things will get tough, although the Poles did get a total of 30 goals in 10 games for qualifying, which is very impressive considering 21 of those were not from their leading striker.
- Star Player - Robert Lewandowski
- Manager - Czeslaw Michniewicz
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Round of 16/Group stage
Poland World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus)
Lukasz Skorupski (Bologna)
Bartlomiej Dragowski (Spezia)
Defenders:
Nicola Zalewski (AS Roma)
Mateusz Wieteska (Clermont)
Jakub Kiwior (Spezia)
Artur Jedrezejczyk (Legia Warsaw)
Robert Gumny (FC Augsburg)
Kamil Glik (Benevento)
Matty Cash (Aston Villa)
Bartosz Bereszynski (Sampdoria)
Jan Bednarek (Aston Villa)
Midfielders:
Szymon Zurkowski (Fiorentina)
Piotr Zielinski (Napoli)
Sebastian Szymanski (Feyenoord)
Damian Szymanski (AEK Athens)
Michal Skoras (Lech Poznan)
Grzegorz Krychowiak (Al-Shabab)
Jakub Kaminski (Vfl Wolfsburg)
Kamil Grosicki (Pohon Szczecin)
Przemylaw Frankowski (Lens)
Krystian Bielik (Birmingham City)
Forwards:
Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
Krzysztof Piatek (Salernitana)
Arkadiusz Milik (Juventus)
Karol Swiderski (Charlotte FC)
Saudi Arabia were the surprise package of their qualifying group, edging out Japan and Australia for top spot. However, at the World Cup finals group C will most likely be too much for them, and betting on the Saudis is tough to advise, especially since they have trouble scoring. Bets on clean sheets for their opponents could be a smart course of action.
- Star Player - Salman Al-Faraj
- Manager - Hervé Renard
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Saudi Arabia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Mohamed Al-Yami (Al-Ahly)
Nawaf Al-Aqidi (Al-Nassr)
Mohamed Al-Owais (Al-Hilal)
Defenders:
Saud Abdulhamid (Al-Hilal)
Mohammed Al-Breik (Al-Hilal)
Sultan Al-Ghanam (Al-Nassr)
Hassan Tambakti (Al-Shabab)
Abdullah Madu (Al-Nassr)
Abdulelah Al-Amri (Al-Nassr)
Ali Al-Bulaihi (Al-Hilal)
Yasser Al-Shahrani (Al-Hilal)
Midfielders:
Hattan Bahebri (Al-Shabab)
Salem Al-Dawsari (Al-Hilal)
Abdulrahman Al-Aboud (Al-Ittihad)
Nasser Al-Dawsari (Al-Hilal)
Abdullah Otayf (Al-Hilal)
Sami Al-Najei (Al-Nassr)
Abdulelah Al-Malki (Al-Hilal)
Mohamed Kanno (Al-Hilal)
Ali Al-Hassan (Al-Nassr)
Riyadh Sharahili (Abha)
Salman Al-Faraj (Al-Hilal)
Forwards:
Nawaf Al-Abed (Al-Shabab)
Firas Al-Buraikan (Al-Fateh)
Saleh Al-Shehri (Al-Hilal)
Haitham Asiri (Al-Ahly)
Group D
The reigning World Cup champions France are yet again one of the favourites to win the tournament, and they are still coached by the legendary Didier Deschamps who took them all the way last time. A star-studded squad from top to bottom, anything other than a run to at least the semi-finals will be considered a major disappointment across the channel.
- Star Player - Kylian Mbappe
- Manager - Didier Deschamps
- Last World Cup finish: Champion
- Expected result - Final+
France World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Hugo Lloris (Tottenham)
Steve Mandanda (Rennes)
Alphonse Areola (West Ham)
Defenders:
Raphael Varane (Manchester United)
Dayout Upamencano (Bayern Munich)
William Saliba (Arsenal)
Benjamin Pavard (Bayern Munich)
Jules Kounde (Barcelona)
Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool)
Presnel Kimpembe (PSG)
Theo Hernandez (AC Milan)
Lucas Hernandez (Bayern Munich)
Midfielders:
Adrien Rabiot (Juventus)
Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid)
Jordan Veretout (Marseille)
Aurelien Tchouameni (Real Madrid)
Matteo Guendouzi (Marseille)
Youssouf Fofana (AS Monaco)
Forwards:
Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
Olivier Giroud (AC Milan)
Christopher Nkunku (RB Leipzig)
Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona)
Kingsley Coman (Bayern Munich)
Australia underwhelmed in qualifying for Qatar, only managing a playoff spot from their group with 4 wins from 10 games. Even their playoff wins against UAE and Peru were tight affairs, and advancing from group D seems nigh-on impossible. A couple of blowout results could sadly also be possible for the Aussies.
- Star Player - Mat Ryan
- Manager - Graham Arnold
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Australia World Cup Squad
Goalkeepers:
Matty Ryan (FC Copenhagen)
Danny Vukovic (Central Coast Mariners)
Andrew Redmayne (Sydney FC)
Defenders:
Thomas Deng (Albirex Niigata)
Bailey Wright (Sunderland)
Kye Rowles (Hearts)
Harry Souttar (Stoke City)
Fran Karacic (Brescia)
Joel King (OB)
Aziz Behich (Dundee United)
Milos Degenek (Columbus Crew)
Midfielders:
Aaron Mooy (Celtic)
Riley McGree (Middlesbrough)
Cameron Devlin (Hearts)
Keanu Baccus (St Mirren)
Ajdin Hrustic (Hellas Verona)
Jackson Irvine (St Pauli)
Forwards:
Craig Goodwin (Adelaide United)
Garang Kuol (Central Coast Mariners)
Mitchell Duke (Fagiano Okayama)
Jason Cummings (Central Coast Mariners)
Jamie Maclaren (Melbourne City)
Martin Boyle (Hibernian)
Mathew Leckie (Melbourne City)
Awer Mabil (Cadiz)
Denmark will be relatively happy with their group draw for the 2022 World Cup, as they have shown proficiency in demolishing weaker teams in their qualification campaign. Getting the better of Australia and Tunisia convincingly is therefore on the cards, but France will likely be too much, leading to a tough last 16 opponent and a likely exit.
- Star Player - Christian Eriksen
- Manager - Kasper Hjulmand
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Round of 16
Denmark World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Kasper Schmeichel (Nice)
Oliver Christensen (Hertha Berlin)
Defenders:
Simon Kjaer (AC Milan)
Andreas Christensen (Barcelona)
Daniel Wass (Brondby)
Victor Nelsson (Galatasaray)
Jens Stryger Larsen (Trabzonspor)
Rasmus Kristensen (Leeds United)
Joachim Andersen (Crystal Palace)
Joakim Maehle (Atalanta)
Midfielders:
Christian Eriksen (Manchester United)
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Tottenham)
Thomas Delaney (Sevilla)
Mathias Jensen (Brentford)
Forwards:
Martin Braithwaite (Espanyol)
Andreas Cornelius (Copenhagen)
Jonas Wind (Vfl Wolfsburg)
Mikkel Damsgaard (Brentford)
Kasper Dolberg (Sevilla)
Jesper Lindstrom (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Andreas Skov Olsen (Club Brugge)
Tunisia are big underdogs in group D, and they had perhaps the easiest route to the finals out of all the African countries, only needing to beat Mali in the final round. Two clean sheets against them along with only 2 conceded in 6 group stage matches could mean that sneaking a draw is possible, but any win at Qatar 2022 would be a big surprise.
- Star Player - Youssef Msakni
- Manager - Jalel Kadri
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Tunisia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Aymen Mathlouthi (Etoile Sahel)
Mouez Hassen (Club Africain)
Bechir Ben Said (US Monastir)
Aymen Dahmen (CS Sfaxien)
Defenders:
Montassar Talbi (Lorient)
Yassine Meriah (Esperance)
Ali Maaloul (Al Ahly)
Wajdi Kechrida (Atromitos)
Bilel Ifa (Kuwait SC)
Nader Ghandri (Club Africain)
Mohamed Drager (FC Luzern)
Ali Abdi (Caen)
Dylan Bronn (Salernitana)
Midfielders:
Elyas Skhiri (FC Cologne)
Ferjani Sassi (Al Duhail)
Hannibal Mejbri (Birmingham City)
Aissa Laidouni (Ferencvaros)
Ghaylane Chaalali (Esperance)
Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane (Esperance)
Forwards:
Naim Sliti (Al Ittifaq)
Youssef Msakni (Al Arabi)
Taha Yassine Khenissi (Kuwait SC)
Wahbi Khazri (Montpellier)
Issam Jebali (Odense)
Seifeddine Jaziri (Zamalek)
Anis Ben Slimane (Brondby)
Group E
Spain are one of the bookies’ favourites to win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and for good reason. Qualifying was a breeze for the Iberians, and the team went on a run of just 1 defeat (2-1 away to France) in their last 12 before Autumn. The lack of star players, especially on the striker front could be a problem, but Barcelona’s young Ansu Fati could be the answer, and Pablo Sarabia’s and Alvaro Morata’s records are decent for their country.
Facing Germany in their group isn’t ideal, but a deep run is still to be expected. Their material might not necessarily be enough for gold, but Luis Enrique has instilled a great system, and it’s not too long since they beat Germany 6-0 in the Nations League in late 2020!
- Star Player - Pedri
- Manager - Luis Enrique
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Semi-finals+
Spain World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Unai Simon (Athletic Bilbao)
David Raya (Brentford)
Robert Sanchez (Brighton)
Defenders:
Aymerick Laporte (Manchester City)
Jordi Alba (Barcelona)
Pau Torres (Villareal)
Hugo Guillamon (Valencia)
Eric Garcia (Barcelona)
Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid)
Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
Midfielders:
Gavi (Barcelona)
Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)
Rodri (Manchester City)
Koke Resurreccion (Atletico Madrid)
Pedri Gonzalez (Barcelona)
Marcos Llorente (Atletico Madrid)
Carlos Soler (PSG)
Forwards:
Alvaro Morata (Atletico Madrid)
Ansu Fati (Barcelona)
Marco Asensio (Real Madrid)
Dani Olmo (RB Leipzig)
Pablo Sarabia (PSG)
Yeremi Pino (Villareal)
Nico Williams (Athletic Bilbao)
Ferran Torres (Barcelona)
Germany qualified for the 2022 World Cup with flying colours winning their admittedly super-easy group with a goal difference of 36-4 in 10 games. Recent matches this summer against heavyweights like Italy, England and the Netherlands have brought 1-1 draws and a 5-2 win, so the Germans are definitely picking up form at the right time.
Major tournaments are usually the bread and butter of Germany teams, and the battle for top place in Group E with Spain could be crucial to avoid tough opponents in the round of 16. Expect goals galore and a possible deep run, maybe even all the way!
- Star Player - Manuel Neuer
- Manager - Hans-Dieter Flick
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Semi-finals+
Germany World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)
Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona)
Defenders:
Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid)
Niklas Sule (Borussia Dortmund)
Christian Gunter (Freiburg)
Armel Bella-Kotchap (Southampton)
Lukas Klostermann (RB Leipzig)
David Raum (RB Leipzig)
Thilo Kehrer (West Ham)
Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund)
Matthias Ginter (Freiburg)
Midfielders:
Ilkay Gundogan (Manchester City)
Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich)
Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich)
Serge Gnabry (Bayern Munich)
Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)
Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich)
Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
Mario Götze (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Julian Brandt (Borussia Dortmund)
Jonas Hofmann (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Forwards:
Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund)
Kai Havertz (Chelsea)
Niclas Fullkrug (Werder Bremen)
Youssoufa Moukoko (Borussia Dortmund)
Japan will have read the names of the teams in their World Cup group with horror. Not being the force they once were, edging out Spain or Germany for a spot in the knockout stages will be a tough task. The Japanese’ strongest aspect is their defence, but against world class players even that won’t be enough.
- Star Player - Maya Yoshida
- Manager - Hajime Moriyasu
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Group stage
Japan World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Daniel Schmidt (Sint-Truiden)
Shuichi Gonda (Shimizu S-Pulse
Eiji Kawashima (Strasbourg)
Defenders:
Maya Yoshida (Schalke 04)
Hiroki Ito (Stuttgart)
Ko Itakura (Borussia Mönchengladbach)
Hiroki Sakai (Urawa Red Diamonds)
Yuta Nakayama (Huddersfield Town)
Miki Yamane (Kawasaki Frontale)
Yuto Nagatomo (FC Tokyo)
Shogo Taniguchi (Kawasaki Frontale)
Takehiro Tomiyasu (Arsenal)
Midfielders:
Ritsu Doan (Freiburg)
Takumi Minamino (Monaco)
Gaku Shibasaki (Leganes)
Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad)
Hidemasa Morita (Sporting Lisbon)
Wataru Endo (Stuttgart)
Junya Ito (Reims)
Ao Tanaka (Fortuna Dusseldorf)
Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton)
Daichi Kamada (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Yuki Soma (Nagoya Grampus)
Forwards:
Takuma Asano (Bochum)
Daizen Maeda (Celtic)
Ayase Ueda (Cercle Brugge)
Costa Rica were the final CONCACAF team to make it to the 2022 World Cup finals after a playoff victory against New Zealand, but unfortunately their qualifying run was rewarded only with a group of death. A group stage exit is all that can be expected, but keep in mind that the team did top a group with Italy, England and Uruguay at the 2014 tournament, so anything can always happen at the World Cup!
- Star Player - Bryan Ruiz
- Manager - Luis Fernando Suárez
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Costa Rica World Cup Squad
Goalkeepers:
Keylor Navas (PSG)
Patrick Sequeira (Lugo)
Esteban Alvarado (Herediano)
Defenders:
Daniel Chacon (Colorado Rapis)
Ronald Matarrita (Cincinnati)
Carlos Martinez (San Carlos)
Kendall Waston (Deportivo Saprissa)
Francisco Calvo (Konyaspor)
Bryan Oviedo (Real Salt Lake)
Oscar Duarte (Al-Wehda)
Keysher Fuller (Herediano)
Juan Pablo Vargas (Millonarios)
Midfielders:
Bryan Ruiz (Alajuelense)
Youstin Salas (Deportivo Saprissa)
Yeltsin Tejeda (Herediano)
Brandon Aguilera (AD Guanacasteca)
Alvaro Zamora (Deportivo Saprissa)
Roan Wilson (Grecia)
Gerson Torres (Herediano)
Douglas Lopez (Santos de Guapile)
Anthony Hernandez (Puntaneras)
Jewison Bennette (Sunderland)
Celso Borges (Alajuelenese)
Forwards:
Joel Campbell (Leon)
Johan Venegas (Alajuelense)
Anthony Contreras (Herediano)
Group F
The free-scoring Belgians are looking to go better in 2022 than their 3rd place finish last time out, and this will most likely be the final tournament of their golden generation. Kevin De Bruyne, Eden & Thorgan Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and the rest of the gang lit up their qualifying group, averaging more than 3 goals per game.
A decent shout to win the World Cup this year, betting on “over” markets is definitely the play for Belgium. Their defence isn’t the fastest, so conceding quite a bit on the counter is also a possibility.
- Star Player - Kevin De Bruyne
- Manager - Roberto Martínez
- Last World Cup finish: 3rd
- Expected result - Semi-finals+
Belgium World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg)
Simon Mignolet (Club Brugge)
Defenders:
Toby Alderweireld (Antwerp)
Wout Faes (Leicester)
Arthur Theate (Rennes)
Leander Dendoncker (Aston Villa)
Zebo Debast (Anderlecht)
Jan Vertonghen (Anderlecht)
Midfielders:
Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
Youri Tielemans (Leicester)
Timothy Castagne (Leicester)
Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Dortmund)
Thomas Meunier (Borussia Dortmund)
Axel Witsel (Atletico Madrid)
Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid)
Amadou Onana (Everton)
Hans Vanaken (Club Brugge)
Forwards:
Romelu Lukaku (Inter Milan)
Eden Hazard (Real Madrid)
Dries Mertens (Galatasaray)
Leandro Trossard (Brighton)
Jeremy Doku (Rennes)
Charles de Ketelaere (AC Milan)
Lois Openda (Lens)
Michy Batshuayi (Fenerbache)
After finishing 2nd at the 2018 World Cup, Croatia were handed an easy group for qualifying to Qatar. Despite topping their group, the Croatians have weakened significantly from four years ago, and although advancing from the group stages should be expected, going further will prove troublesome due to ageing star players.
For betting on Croatia you should look to their defence, who only conceded 4 times in 10 qualifying games. 1-0 wins over France and Denmark in the summer’s Nations League fixtures also showed that Zlatko Dalic’s men have still got it even in the biggest games, but the World Cup finals might be too much with the lack of goal threat and over-reliance on a 37-year old Luka Modric.
- Star Player - Luka Modric
- Manager - Zlatko Dalic
- Last World Cup finish - 2nd
- Expected result - Round of 16
Croatia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Ivo Grbic (Atletico Madrid)
Ivica Ivusic (Osijek)
Dominik Livakovic (Dinamo Zagreb)
Defenders:
Josip Stanisic (Bayern Munich)
Martin Erlic (Sassuolo)
Josip Juranovic (Celtic)
Domagoj Vida (AEK Athens)
Josko Gvardiol (RB Leibzig)
Borna Sosa (Stuttgart)
Dejan Lovren (Zenit St Petersburg)
Josip Sutalo (Dinamo Zagreb)
Borna Barisic (Rangers)
Midfielders:
Mateo Kovacic (Chelsea)
Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
Marcelo Brozovic (Inter)
Krijstijan Jakic (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Luka Sucic (RB Salzburg)
Nikola Vlasic (Torino)
Mario Pasalic (Atalanta)
Lovro Majer (Rennes)
Forwards:
Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim)
Ivan Perisic (Tottenham)
Mislav Orsic (Dinamo Zagreb)
Ante Budimir (Osasuna)
Bruno Petkovic (Dinamo Zagreb)
Marko Livaja (Hajduk Split)
Canada made it to Qatar by finishing top of their CONCACAF qualifying group. Their defence was especially formidable in qualifying, conceding only 0,5 goals per match. However, in group F they will face considerably more formidable opponents, and qualification to the knockout stages will be a struggle.
- Star Player - Alphonso Davies
- Manager - John Herdman
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage (1986)
- Expected result - Group stage
Canada World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
James Pantemis (CF Montreal)
Dayne St Clair (Minnesota United)
Milan Borjan (Red Star Belgrade)
Defenders:
Derek Cornelius (Panetolikos)
Joel Waterman (CF Montreal)
Sam Adekugbe (Hatayspor)
Kamal Miller (CF Montreal)
Richie Laryea (Nottingham Forest)
Alistair Johnston (CF Montreal)
Steven Vitoria (Chavez)
Midfielders:
Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich)
David Wotherspoon (St Johnstone)
Ismael Kone (CF Montreal)
Mark-Anthony Kaye (Toronto FC)
Samuel Piette (CF Montreal)
Liam Fraser (Deinze)
Stephen Eustaquio (FC Porto)
Jonathan Osorio (Toronto FC)
Atiba Hutchinson (Besiktas)
Forwards:
Junior Hoilett (Reading)
Liam Millar (Basel)
Tajon Buchanan (Club Brugge)
Lucas Cavallini (Vancouver Whitecaps)
Ike Ugbo (Troyes)
Cyle Larin (Club Brugge)
Jonathan David (Lille)
Morocco dominated in the CAF qualifying stage for the World Cup, scoring 25 goals and only conceding three times in the process. If the other teams in group F don’t do their preparation well they could be surprised by the Moroccans’ offensive prowess, as they scored 3 times or more in 75% of their qualifying games. However, in a group with Belgium and Croatia advancing further would be a surprise.
- Star Player - Romain Saiss
- Manager - Vahid Halilhodzic
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Average amount of goals in games: Expected result - Group stage
Morocco World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti (Wydad Casablanca)
Munir El Kajoui (Al Wehda)
Yassine Bounou (Sevilla)
Defenders:
Romain Saiss (Besiktas)
Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich)
Achraf Hakimi (PSG)
Jawad El Yamiq (Real Valladolid)
Achraf Dari (Stade Brest)
Badr Benoun (Qatar SC)
Yahia Attiat Allah (Wydad Casablanca)
Nayef Aguerd (West Ham)
Midfielders:
Abdelhamid Sabiri (Sampdoria)
Azzedine Ounahi (Angers)
Yahya Jabrane (Wydad Casablanca)
Bilal El Khannouss (Racing Genk)
Selim Amallah (Standard Liege)
Sofyan Amrabat (Fiorentina)
Forwards:
Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea)
Amine Harit (Olympique Marseille)
Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al Ittihad)
Abde Ezzalzouli (Osasuna)
Youssef En-Nesyri (Sevilla)
Walid Cheddira (Bari)
Ilias Chair (Queens Park Rangers)
Soufiane Boufal (Angers)
Zakaria Aboukhlal (Toulouse)
Group G
Group G’s star team is definitely Brazil, who flew through qualifying losing 0 times with a goal difference of +35. However, it’s their defence that has especially shone, with qualifying bringing 13 clean sheets over 17 games. With Neymar, Vinicius Jr and Gabriel Jesus in the team goals are always never far away, and the South Americans will be looking to improve on their quarter-final exit against Belgium in 2018.
- Star Player - Neymar
- Manager - Tité
- Last World Cup finish: Quarter-finals
- Expected result - Semi-finals+
Brazil World Cup Squad
Goalkeepers:
Alisson (Liverpool)
Ederson (Manchester City)
Weverton (Palmeiras
Defenders:
Dani Alves (Pumas UNAM)
Danilo (Juventus)
Alex Telles (Sevilla)
Alex Sandro (Juventus)
Thiago Silva (Chelsea)
Marquinhos (PSG)
Eder Militao (Real Madrid)
Bremer (Juventus)
Midfielders:
Fabinho (Liverpool)
Fred (Manchester United)
Casemiro (Manchester United)
Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle United)
Lucas Paqueta (West Ham)
Everton Ribeiro (Flamengo)
Forwards:
Neymar (PSG)
Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid)
Antony (Manchester United)
Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
Raphinha (Barcelona)
Richarlison (Tottenham)
Rodrygo (Real Madrid)
Pedro (Flamengo)
Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal)
Cameroon reached their 7th World Cup finals in impressive fashion, defeating an always strong Ivory Coast in the second round groups and Algeria boosted by Riyad Mahrez and qualifying top scorer (8) Islam Slimani in the third round. Group G is extremely tight behind Brazil and Cameroon could be a nice surprise shout to reach the knockouts.
- Star Player - Vincent Aboubakar
- Manager - Rigobert Song
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Cameroon World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Andre Onana (Inter Milan)
Simon Ngapandouetnbu (Marseille)
Devis Epassy (Abha Club)
Defenders:
Christopher Wooh (Stade Rennes)
Tolo Nouhou (Seattle Sounders)
Nicolas Nkoulou (Aris Salonika)
Olivier Mbaizo (Philadelphia Union)
Collins Fai (Al Tai)
Enzo Ebosse (Udinese)
Jean-Charles Castelletto (Nantes)
Midfielders:
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa (Napoli)
Samuel Oum Gouet (Mechelen)
Gael Ondoua (Hannover 96)
Olivier Ntcham (Swansea City)
Pierre Kunde (Olympiakos)
Martin Hongla (Verona)
Forwards:
Karl Toko Ekambi (Lyon)
Jean-Pierre Nsame (Young Boys Berne)
Georges-Kevin Nkoudou (Besiktas)
Jerome Ngom (Colombe Dja)
Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu (Young Boys Berne)
Bryan Mbeumo (Brentford)
Souaibou Marou (Coton Sport)
Eric-Maxim Choupo Moting (Bayern Munich)
Christian Bassogog (Shanghai Shenhua)
Vincent Aboubakar (Al Nassr)
Switzerland went undefeated in qualifying despite sharing a group with reigning Euro 2020 champs Italy, so big things are expected in the Alps for this year’s World Cup finals. Bets on “under” markets could be especially smart for games with the Swiss, as they only conceded 2 goals in 8 qualifying games.
The second strongest team in their group, expect Switzerland to qualify, but Cameroon and Serbia are definitely no pushovers, so bets on qualifying might not be smart.
- Star Player - Granit Xhaka
- Manager - Murat Yakin
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Round of 16
Switzerland World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Yann Sommer (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Gregor Kobel (Borussia Dortmund)
Philipp Kohn (Salzburg)
Jonas Omlin (Montpellier)
Defenders:
Manuel Akanji (Manchester City)
Fabian Schar (Newcastle United)
Eray Comert (Valencia)
Silvan Widmer (Mainz 05)
Nico Elvedi (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Ricardo Rodriguez (Torino)
Midfielders:
Granit Zhaka (Arsenal)
Xherdan Shaqiri (Chicago Fire)
Denis Zakaria (Chelsea)
Fabian Rieder (Young Boys)
Edimilson Fernandes (Mainz)
Ardon Jashari (Luzern)
Fabian Frei (Basel)
Michel Aebischer (Bologna)
Renato Steffen (Lugano)
Djibril Sow (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Remo Freuler (Nottingham Forest)
Forwards:
Ruben Vargas (Augsburg)
Breel Embolo (Monaco)
Haris Seferovic (Galatasaray)
Noah Okafor (RB Salzburg)
Christian Fassnacht (Young Boys)
Serbia qualified for the World Cup in impressive fashion, taking down Portugal in their group to win it and straight qualification to these finals. Group G and further advancing in the tournament will be an equally tough task, but Dragan Stojkovic’s men definitely have potential for a few upsets, especially in a tight group like this although the bookies might not favour them to progress too much.
- Star Player - Dusan Tadic
- Manager - Dragan Stojkovic
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
Serbia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Vanja Milinkovic-Savic (Torino)
Predrag Rajkovic (Mallorca)
Marko Dmitrovic (Sevilla)
Defenders:
Srdjan Babic (Almeria)
Strahinja Erakovic (Red Star Belgrade)
Filip Mladenovic (Legia Warsaw)
Milos Veljkovic (Werder Bremen)
Strahinja Pavlovic (RB Salzburg)
Nikola Milenkovic (Fiorentina)
Stefan Mitrovic (Getafe)
Midfielders:
Darko Lazovic (Hellas Verona)
Andrija Zivkovic (PAOK)
Ivan Ilic (Hellas Verona)
Nemanja Maksimovic (Getafe)
Uros Racic (Braga)
Filip Kostic (Juventus)
Marko Grujic (FC Porto)
Sasa Lukic (Torino)
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Lazio)
Nemanja Gudelj (Sevilla)
Forwards:
Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham)
Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)
Dusan Tadic (Ajax)
Nemanja Radonjic (Torino)
Filip Duricic (Sampdoria)
Luka Jovic (Fiorentina)
Group H
On paper, Portugal have one of the most stacked squads at the 2022 World Cup, but betting on them to go far could be a mistake. Led by a 37-year old Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese only managed 2nd in their qualifying group behind Serbia, and needed the playoffs to make these finals.
Recently, they also lost to Switzerland in June, and although progress from group H should be almost guaranteed, form dictates that a Portuguese victory or deep run seems unlikely. Keeping clean sheets has been especially problematic for the team, but if all stars align they do have potential to even win the whole tournament.
- Star Player - Cristiano Ronaldo
- Manager - Fernando Santos
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in Round of 16
- Expected result - Quarter-finals
Portugal World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Rui Patricio (AS Roma)
Jose Sa (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
Diogo Costa (FC Porto)
Defenders:
Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)
Pepe (FC Porto)
Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund)
Nuno Mendes (PSG)
Antonio Silva (Benfica)
Danilo Pereira (PSG)
Diogo Dalot (Manchester United)
Midfielders:
Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Joao Mario (Benfica)
William Carvalho (Real Betis)
Vitinha (PSG)
Otavio Monteiro (FC Porto)
Matheus Nunes (Wolves)
Ruben Neves (Wolves)
Joao Palhinha (Fulham)
Forwards:
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Andre Silva (RB Leipzig)
Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid)
Ricardo Horta (SC Braga)
Rafael Leao (AC Milan)
Goncalo Ramos (Benfica)
Uruguay will be battling Portugal for top spot in group H, but with their qualifying form being pretty awful and the impact of Luis Suarez waning with age even a group stage exit in a stronger group wouldn’t be a surprise.
However, with Ghana and South Korea not impressing, “La Celeste” should reach the knockouts, with a swift exit at the Round of 16 most likely to follow. Not too good attacking and defensively especially suspect, this could be a tough winter tournament for Uruguay.
- Star Player - Luis Suarez
- Manager - Diego Alonso
- Last World Cup finish: Quarter-finals
- Expected result - Round of 16
Uruguay World Cup Squad
Goalkeepers:
Sebastian Sosa (Indepediente)
Sergio Rochet (Nacional)
Fernando Muslera (Galatasaray)
Defenders:
Matias Vina (AS Roma)
Sebastian Coates (Sporting)
Martin Caceres (LA Galaxy)
Mathias Olivera (Napoli)
Diego Godin (Velez Sarsfield)
Jose Maria Gimenez (Atletico Madrid)
Ronald Araujo (Barcelona)
Guillermo Varela (Flamengo)
Jose Luis Rodriguez (Nacional)
Midfielders:
Matias Vecino (Lazio)
Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)
Manuel Ugarte (Sporting)
Lucas Torreira (Galatasaray)
Nicolas De La Cruz (River Plate)
Felipe Carballo (Nacional)
Rodrigo Bentancur (Tottenham)
Agustin Canobbio (Athletico Paranaense)
Giorgian De Arrascaeta (Flamengo)
Facundo Pellistri (Manchester United)
Forwards:
Darwin Nunez (Liverpool)
Luis Suarez (Nacional)
Edinson Cavani (Valencia)
Facundo Torres (Orlando City)
Maximiliano Gomez (Trabzonspor)
Ghana’s route to Qatar 2022 was far from smooth, barely qualifying on equal points with South Africa from the second round and edging Nigeria in overtime in the final qualification. Despite having the likes of Andre Ayew in their ranks the "Black Stars" had trouble scoring, barely managing over 1 goal per game in their weak group, so qualifying from group H in these finals would be a huge surprise.
- Star Player - Andre Ayew
- Manager - Otto Addo
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage (2014)
- Expected result - Group stage
Ghana World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Lawrence Ati Zigi (St Gallen)
Danlad Ibrahim (Asante Kotoko)
Manaf Nurudeen (Eupen)
Defenders:
Gideon Mensah (Auxerre)
Abdul-Rahman Baba (Reading)
Mohammed Salisu (Southampton)
Alexander Djiku (Strasbourg)
Joseph Aidoo (Celta Vigo)
Daniel Amartey (Leicester City)
Alidu Seidu (Clermont)
Tariq Lamptey (Brighton)
Denis Odoi (Fulham)
Midfielders:
Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
Andre Ayew (Al-Sadd)
Daniel Kofi Kyereh (Freiburg)
Mohammed Kudus (Ajax)
Salis Abdul Samed (Lens)
Elisha Owusu (Gent)
Forwards:
Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace)
Kamaldeen Sulemana (Rennes)
Antoine Semenyo (Bristol City)
Inaki Williams (Athletic Bilbao)
Osman Bukari (Red Star Belgrade)
Issahaku Abdul Fatawu (Sporting Lisbon)
Kamal Sowah (Club Brugge)
Daniel Barnieh Afriyie (Hearts of Oak)
Despite having Son Heung-min in their ranks South Korea are definitely a more defence-minded team, going 13-3 in goals over 10 qualifying matches. Losing out to Iran for top spot in their group was a disappointment, and with this kind of form the Asians will most likely exit at the group stage. Betting on low-scoring games could be the way to enjoy South Korea games at Qatar.
- Star Player - Son Heung-min
- Manager - Paulo Bento
- Last World Cup finish: Eliminated in group stage
- Expected result - Group stage
South Korea World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk Motors)
Jo Hyeon-woo (Ulsan Hyundai)
Kim Seung-gyu (Al Shabab)
Defenders:
Cho Yu-min (Daejon Citizen)
Kwon Kyung-won (Gamba Osaka)
Kim Tae-hwan (Ulsan Hyundai)
Kim Young-gwon (Ulsan Hyundai)
Yoon Jong-gyu (FC Seoul)
Kim Moon-hwan (Jeonbuk Motors)
Hong Chul (Daegu FC)
Kim Min-jae (Napoli)
Kim Jin-su (Jeonbuk Motors)
Midfielders:
Lee Kang-in (Real Mallorca)
Jeong Woo-yeong (Freiburg)
Hwang In-beom (Olympiacos)
Hwang Hee-chan (Wolves)
Lee Jae-sung (Mainz)
Kwon Chang-hoon (Gimcheon Sangmu)
Song Min-kyu (Jeonbuk Motors)
Son Jun-ho (Shandong Taishan)
Paik Seung-ho (Jeonbuk Motors)
Na Sang-ho (FC Seoul)
Jung Woo-young (Al Sadd)
Forwards:
Son Heung-min (Tottenham)
Cho Gue-sung (Jeonbuk Motors)
Hwang Ui-jo (Olympiacos)
World cup betting - FAQ
Article by:
Joel Kelly
Joel has worked in the iGaming industry for nearly a third of his life, with almost a decade of experience with casinos, sports betting and poker. During this time he has had the opportunity of testing dozens of different bookies, casinos and poker sites, with his focus currently being managing Bojoko's UK sports betting content.