Betting on Euro 2020 Qualifiers Explained

If you are like many football fans, you probably wish International breaks never existed. But after UEFA created the Nations League to replace friendlies, football breaks have become exciting. This year, however, the tournament to watch is the Euro 2020 qualifiers.

The qualifiers commenced earlier in March and will run up to July next year. If you bet on sports regularly, the qualifiers are packed with action. Every national team wants to get to the Euros, after all. Read this guide to learn more about the competition and how to bet on its games.

24 Teams Involved; Two Ways to Qualify

The UEFA Euro tournament has a new format but qualifying for the tournament remains the same to a great extent. Twenty four teams will battle out for the trophy later next year. Twenty of the teams will qualify through 10 groups made up of five or six teams while the remaining four will qualify through a playoff system.

Five groups comprise of five teams while the rest have six national sides. As part of the new system, there will be four teams in the ten groups that have already qualified for the UEFA Nations League. But they will still need to fight for a top-two position to qualify for Euro 2020.

The playoffs will involve 16 teams drawn from the UEFA Nations League. They will be grouped into fours, and only one team from each group will qualify for Euro 2020. Take note that the 16 teams will be selected based on their performance in the already completed 2018/19 Nations League. The draw will take place later in November while the playoffs will take place next year in March.

Competitive Draws

This year’s qualifier should intrigue every betting fan. Unlike the past, the draws consist of reasonably competitive sides.  England are the favourites to top Group A after winning their first four matches. Although they still had weaker opponents like Montenegro, they had to work hard for their wins against the Czech, Kosovo, Montenegro and Bulgaria.

Ukraine leads group B after four wins and one draw. Portugal are second after four matches but stand at eight points, five less than group leaders. Group C is a tough one, at least for the Netherlands who rank third and three points behind Germany and North Ireland.

Another unpredictable group to watch is Group H. Turkey, and France leads the group jointly after six games. Iceland rank third-place with three points but they have an opportunity to edge out either Turkey or France.

Among the remaining groups, Spain has the easiest fixtures. It leads Group F with 18 points after six matches. Its closest competitor, Sweden, has eleven points.

Lots of Betting Markets

Spain could win Group F undefeated. But with many groups consisting of competitive fixtures; the qualifiers promises excellent betting opportunities. More precisely, bookmakers will feature plenty of high-value odds more than they do.

If you have a reliable system for finding quality odds, you are good to go. If you don’t, consider using oddspedia for all your bet-hunting needs. The website helps you compare odds from the best bookmakers in Europe. It does it in a useful method such that you’ll know the best bookie to bet on the home team, a draw or the away side.

As you shop around to find great odds, ensure you choose odds having analyzed games profoundly. It’s easy to get tempted by odds that promise triple or more your stake. But as it’s with betting, there’s also the risk of losing.

Fortunately, bookies provide numerous betting markets during Euro qualifiers. If you find it challenging to predict whether Denmark will beat Switzerland at home, you could predict which side scores first. You can back a player from either team to score or average how many goals will be scored.

Club Competition Factor

The fact that the Euro qualifiers take place in between club competitions means some key national players may be injured. Others might choose not to play for their countries while some could be out of form. These are crucial factors to keep in mind before you bet.

With countries like Germany, Portugal, England and France; you can count on them to beat inferior teams even when a few stars are missing. But for competitive fixtures, you shouldn’t take that risk. Another thing to consider is the motivation teams have to win specific matches.

Take Spain as an example. They’ve already thrashed all of their group competitors and stand seven points clear. Although they could be happy to beat Sweden away, it’s the latter that needs the win more. In Group D, both Denmark have a reasonable chance at clinching position two. They drew 3-3 in their last meeting, so anticipate a thrilling goal-blessed fixture when they next meet.

Euro 2020: Who will win?

By now we have an idea of some of the teams we expect to qualify for the Euro 2020. But who will hold the trophy come July 12? Will Portugal defend it or will it be in-form Spain? It’s too early to tell, but bookmakers have already given out odds for expected winners.

France are the favourites to win according to bookies. If you also have a similar belief, you can bet on the team to win at odds 4.50. England are the second favourites at odds 6.00 while Belgium comes in third at odds 8.00.

If you think Spain will win, you can bet on them and win 8.5 times worth your stake. The defending champions feature odds 17.00, the same as Italy. Bookies don’t seem to think last year’s world cup finalists Croatia have a chance at Euro 2020. But if you do, you can bet on them and win up to €2600 for every €100.

To Conclude

The Euro 2020 is Europe’s most respected national football tournament. It won’t be back until later next year, but qualifiers are ongoing. Predictably, the big teams are dominating the group stages. That’s alright though because it could make your work as a punter easier.

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