In just a few short weeks, the 2022 edition of the FIFA soccer World Cup will finally get underway. In a break with tradition, the heat of Qatar means that the tournament has been pushed back to the winter months, and it will all kick off on November 20th.
There are relatively few shocks at a World Cup. The biggest teams tend to come through and lift the trophy, but which nations will be hopeful of springing a surprise this time around?
The Favorites
Firstly, check on the favorites. According to sportsbooks around the world, Brazil is most likely to win the World Cup in 2022, while the closest challenges are expected to come from France and England.
Brazil is the most successful country in the history of the tournament, while France will travel to Qatar as the defending champions. England, meanwhile, were semifinalists in 2018 and runners up at Euro 2020, and there is a lot of support for this young side.
Those are the teams expected to do well, but where will the shocks come from?
The Netherlands
The Dutch were losing World Cup finalists in 1974 and 1978 during a golden period for the side. They also won the European Championships in 1988 before making the World Cup final again in 2010.
A barren period followed, and the Netherlands failed to qualify for the previous tournament in Russia. The team responded, changes were made, and Holland breezed through the qualifying rounds.
The 2022 squad contains world-class players, including Virgil van Dijk who commanded the record transfer fee for a defender when he joined Liverpool in 2015.
According to the most popular betting sites in Netherlands, the Dutch carry a mid-range price in the outright winner market, but they will be confident of going deep into the knockout stages. The pattern, according to sources linking to SBO.net. It is repeated by sportsbooks around the world.
There will be some competitive matches played between now and the start of the tournament, and those odds will be subject to fluctuations. As those updates come in, SBO will update the figures and reflect them on the website.
A raft of additional information is published, which can help readers make a decision. Breaking news stories, blog posts, and betting guides are in place. If site visitors want to act on that information, it’s possible to do just that.
Each sports betting site is open to new players. This will involve a secure online registration process, and many will publish generous welcome offers. A range of deposit options are in place, which will help players to cover opening bets.
Once onboard, there will be a host of other benefits. Most bookmakers publish additional promotions, while they will all have live betting and a choice of other sports.
The combination of a strong squad and an impressive qualifying campaign makes the Netherlands a danger at Qatar 2022, but there should be many more challenges from within the lower-ranked nations.
Portugal
Portugal’s hopes are set to depend on their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo. He’s a record breaker in all areas of the game and has scored more international goals than any other player in history.
This Portuguese side is among the outsiders, but they retain a number of players who were part of the winning Euro 2016 squad. If Ronaldo is pulling the strings and other key players are on form, Portugal could upset those odds.
Belgium
While Belgium finished in third place in Russia 2018, the bookmakers have not rated the current team too highly. The current form isn’t so good, and the squad has aged by another four years.
The quality is still there, however, and perhaps the Red Devils will be the team to spring a surprise.
The United States
How would we measure success for the United States Men’s Soccer Team in Qatar? Even their most ardent of supporters won’t be expecting them to win, but it would be great to see them go deep into the tournament.
Firstly, the USMNT will need to qualify from a tough group that includes England, Wales, and Iran. If they can do that and win at least one knockout game, Qatar 2022 will be seen as a success.
