England kick off their World Cup campaign on Wednesday, and to celebrate, I’ve taken a look at some slightly obscure pre-tournament markets. Take these with a pinch of salt, but I’ve tried to add a bit of theory on why each of the picks has value outside of your traditional betting markets. Let’s jump in.
TL;DR – My Three England World Cup Specials
| Bet | Bookie | Odds | Ratings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stage of elimination – semi-final | 10bet | 11/2 | 1 |
| England to score 9 points | 10bet | 6/4 | 2 |
| England group goals scored – 9 | Betfred | 3/1 | 1 |
No Expiry Date
*Odds correct at 10:30 BST on 15/06/2026. Odds subject to change.
Bet 1: England Stage of Elimination – Semi-Final
Crystal ball time. How will England get on? Can they end 60 years of hurt?
Honestly, I don’t think we will. I think the front three/four are amongst the best in the tournament, but I’m not convinced with the backline. I’m not sure that Thomas Tuchel knows what his best combination is yet, either, which is a worry.
So, doing a bit of predicting and putting the old World Cup wall chart to good use, I’m predicting we get to the semi-finals.
If my picks are correct, we will get Mexico in the Round of 16, Brazil in the quarter-final, then Argentina in the semi-final, where I think we come unstuck.
It’ll be a decent run, although anything less than a win would likely be seen as a failure given how long it’s been since we last won. World Cup odds of 11/2 with 10bet are as good as you will get here.
Bet 2: England Exact Group Points – 9
On paper, this is about as friendly a group as we could have hoped for. Croatia are the main threat, and even though they knocked us out of the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, as Chris has touched on in his England vs Croatia betting tips, they aren’t the same side that finished third in Qatar.
Backing them to win all three games at 6/4 with Betfred is the pick of the bunch here for me, as they should cruise both games against Ghana and Panama.
However, here’s a little hack for you. Instead of backing England to get nine points in this market, which basically means they must win all three games, back England to win each individual game as a treble with the best World Cup betting sites.
By doing this, the odds jump from 6/4 to 15/8, getting you a little more bang for your buck.
Bet 3: England Group Goals Scored – Over 8.5 Goals
The game against Panama will play a big role in the total number of goals scored. The fact that we play them third out of the three should benefit us, given that the game will likely be a dead rubber and open things up a bit.
I can easily see four, five or even more goals scored in this one. Given that I’m backing England to win all three games, a conservative number here would be eight across the board.
Over 7.5 goals is priced at 13/8, but bumping that line up to over 8.5 goals priced at 3/1 is the play.
As an expansion of this, 10bet has set the line for England’s total number of tournament goals at over/under 11.5. I think even money on over 11.5 is good value. Assuming they make at least the quarter-finals, this line has a half-chance of covering as early as the group stage.
