The 2022 World Cup in Qatar gets underway in less than two weeks. As international teams finalize their 26-man rosters, it’s time to start thinking about which countries will boom or bust in this World Cup.
Here, we take a look at some initial picks and team props to get you thinking about the World’s most watched international competition kicking off very shortly.
Best Bets of the Group Stage
From FanDuel Sportsbook: Home Team refers to the team listed first, Away Team refers to second team listed. Wagers based on 90 minutes plus any injury time only (Extra Time and Penalty Shootouts do not count)
Game: Senegal at Netherlands, -170
This is quite the upset pick, but the Netherlands national team hasn’t been good in recent years. Senegal could be considered one of the dark horses to make it pretty far in Qatar in 2022. That’s because their star-player, Sadio Mane, is one of the best forwards in the game today. Many of Senegals’ strongest players are in the midfield with names like Pape Gueye (Marseille), Idrissa Gueye (Everton), and Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham) competing for some of the best clubs in the Premier League and the French Ligue 1. Netherland has far stronger players than Senegal with guys like Virgil van Djik (Liverpool) on defense, Frankie de Jong (Barcelona) in the midfield, and Memphis Depay (Barcelona) up front. Still, if you wanted to go for a stunning upset, I think Senegal has one of the best chances to pull something like that out of all the teams in the first group stage games of this year’s World Cup. Place a small bet here, and hope for the best. Ultimately, we like Senegal to defeat Netherlands as the most probable upset of all the first games to be played. Again, it is unlikely for Senegal to win this one. However, for a +450 profit, we like them as a team that could make it out of their group beginning with an important team win over the Netherlands.
The Pick: Senegal, +450
Game: USA at Wales, +200
The U.S. men’s national team has been in a period of major rebuilding over the last few years. After finding success in the 2014 World Cup, the national team roster with Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, and Tim Howard at the forefront was getting old. Today, the US national team heads into Qatar with what will likely be one of the youngest rosters in the tournament. Notably, the U.S. will bank off the heroics of Christian Pulisic (Chelsea), Giovanni Reyna (Dortmund), and Weston McKennie (Juventus) who are all elite players on Champions League caliber rosters. Though Pulisic and McKennie are both 24, Reyna is just 19 years old as he continues to develop as a youngster shining in Borussia Dortmund's midfield. These young talents are poised to redefine what US soccer is about heading into this year’s World Cup. They will be poised
The Pick: USA, +135
Game: Morocco at Croatia, -130
Croatia made it to the finals of the 2018 World Cup but fell short of Gold. Heading into Qatar in 2022, the Croatian roster looks a lot younger. Though their (very likely) captain, Luka Modric (Real Madrid), is now 36-years old, many young players have been added to the roster. One crucial talent for Croatia in this year’s World Cup will be Mateo Kovocic (Chelsea). Now into his late twenties, the veteran midfielder has played a crucial role for Chelsea since he joined the team in 2019.
Morocco’s prospective roster isn’t a joke either. Notably, defenseman Archraf Hakim (Paris Saint-Germain) leads all the names on the roster as one of the most outstanding center-backs today. While Morocco doesn’t have many other big names in their roster, many of the team’s players expected to make the roster play in the French Ligue 1 or Spain’s La Liga.
Despite Croatia’s aging squad, they should easily beat Morocco in their first game of the tournament.
The Pick: Croatia, -130
Team Props
Game: France at Australia, +1100
France has potentially the most lethal offense heading into the 2022 World Cup. As they compete against significantly weaker teams within their group, Les Bleus will kick-off their World Cup against the Australian national team. On paper this should be a blowout, as France’s roster which is stacked with superstars is simply no match for Australia’s significantly weaker group of players. While it’s tough to say that France will certainly score four or more goals in their first game of this year’s World Cup, we really like this prop at +360 especially from the defending World Cup (2018) Champs. With Karim Benzema, Antoine Griezmann, and Kylian Mbappe, France’s offense has all it needs to score plenty of goals in their first game of this year’s World Cup. Furthermore, the addition of two young studs from Real Madrid
The Pick: France to Score 4 or More Goals, +360
Game: Belgium at Canada, +810
Belgium should dominate Canada in their first match of the Group stage. Canada has a very weak roster that pales in comparison to Belgium's. Belgium went all the way to the Semi-Finals of the 2018 World Cup losing to future champions France. On paper, they have one of the strongest roster of players. Goalkeeper Thibault Courtois (Real Madrid) remains one of the best in the World. Even though they have a solid defense, their lethal midfielders and forwards should make them one of the most dangerous offenses to face in this world cup. Though Eden Hazard’s time at Real Madrid hasn’t gone well, he is still a world-class caliber player. Alongside Hazard, Belgium have Romelu Lukaku and Dries Mertens up front. The heart of the Belgian midfielder lies with Kevin De Bruyne, who might be the team’s best player all together. Alongside Yannick Carrasco and Alex Wietsel, Belgium’s midfield could be the strongest of all 32 teams in this year’s tournament. Expect them to score at least one goal in each half of their first world cup game against a simply inferior Canadian national team.
The Pick: Belgium To Score in Both Halves, +106
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