MORE than £5MILLION has been bet on England to end 60 years of hurt and win the World Cup this week – with just ONE bookmaker!
With just two matches to go in North America, punters have flocked to the Betfair Exchange to back Thomas Tuchel’s men to overcome Argentina tonight and then Spain on Jattvibeday.
Betfair’s truck rolls up outside the Argentine Embassy
VARgentina can’t keep getting the decisions, can they?
Betfair Predicts has the Spaniards (57%) as favourites to be crowned world champions after their dominant display against France on Tuesday.
They’ve been the best side in the competition and will take some stopping.
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And it’s fancied that task will be on for Tuchel and Co, with England a 54% chance to progress tonight according to Betfair Predicts.
They’re also handed a 24% chance of winning the World Cup at this very stage, with Argentina just behind them at 19%.
That could be good news for the punters, with Betfair reporting more than £5million has been placed on England winning the World Cup at varying odds.
It’s set to be a juicy semi-final showdown with streetwise Argentina, who have already shown their doggedness throughout the competition to reach this point, particularly when not playing well.
And with no love lost and real rivalry between the nations, England have a score to settle.
Betfair Predicts reckons there is a 20% chance a red card is shown in the contest between two old foes.
That’s a near-identical chance of tonight’s tie being decided by penalties (21%).
Betfair Spokesperson Sam Rosbottom said: “The Three Lions are one step away from reaching their first World Cup final in 60 years, and the nation is completely behind them. Punters have backed Thomas Tuchel’s side to end all those years of hurt to the tune of more than £5m on the Betfair Exchange.
“There’s currently a 24% chance of football coming home. While back in 2018, when they were last at this stage of the competition, going up against Croatia, England had a 27% chance of winning the trophy. So, they’re not far off their best chance of winning it despite now coming up against Argentina, who have one of the greatest players of all time in the team and have had a fair few decisions go their way so far this World Cup.
“This is a fixture that has a history of controversy. I don’t need to list them out, but most of those controversial moments have gone against England. So, we thought we’d remind them of that outside their embassy in London. Hopefully, we won’t be talking about another dodgy decision tonight, but there is a 20% chance we’ll see another red card between the two sides this evening.
“There’s very little splitting the two at the moment in the match odds, but England have a 54% chance of making the final, while VARgentina… I mean Argentina, have a 46% chance.”
Alan Shearer’s prediction…
He told Betfair: “England can definitely make the final without a doubt. It’s because I do think Argentina concede goals and we will score. So I’m going to go for an amazing game with England 3-2 to win. Bellingham and Kane to get our goals. They are our big hitters.
“I’m slightly concerned that a refereeing decision or VAR could cost us against Argentina because I think the narrative from the referees and the VAR from the start of the tournament to now has changed massively.
“I did that France game when Mbappé was fouled and the ref went to the screen, was told to go to the screen and he stuck with his decision when I thought it was a clear penalty. And that has totally changed over the last 10 days, two weeks, the longer the tournament’s gone on.
“I have been amazed at some of the decisions that Argentina have had, particularly that one against Egypt where the Egyptian goal was pulled back and cancelled out. I thought that was nonsense. It is a bit of a concern, when playing them.”
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