LAS VEGAS — I have long preferred calling the beautiful game futebol, maybe as a nod to the magnificent Pelé or in tribute to the Brazilian national team’s record five World Cup championships.
It should befit Euro 2024, too, since I’m picking Portugal to win its second continental crown in three competitions, when this year’s tournament culminates inside Berlin’s Olympiastadion on Sunday, July 14.
Qatar 2022 was a smashing send-off for Lionel Messi, who led Argentina to the World Cup trophy, and we envisage a similar farewell for the 39-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo in Germany.
Odds to win Euro 2024
England is the betting favorite to win Euro 2024, according to odds at top sports betting sites, with France and Germany priced close behind. If you’re on board with our prediction, Portugal is offered for to win it all.
Here are each team’s odds to win Euro 2024:
Euro 2024 prediction: Why we like Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal to lift the cup in Germany
Os Navegadores, so nicknamed due to the long history of the Portuguese exploring the world, were the lone side that eased through the final stage of qualifying without suffering a defeat or a draw.
Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva & Co., outscored foes 36-2 in winning all 10 of those matches.
Diogo Costa, 24, started at keeper in seven of those qualifying games. He allowed the two goals but stopped the other 13 shots the Portuguese defense allowed on target.
Portugal, which partook in one of the three qualifying groups that played 10 matches (the other seven groups played eight), led everyone with a dynamic goals-plus-assists ratio of 6.40 over 90 minutes.
Moreover, it’s the lone team with two players above 1.30 in that specialty; Ronaldo (1.37) and Fernandes (1.50).
Its defensive ratio of 0.40 (goals plus assists in regulation) was one of five sides at fewer than 1, and it’s that elite makeup on both sides of the ball that we see powering Ronaldo to a triumphant potential final international act.
Euro 2024 best bets
Weeks ago, I got Portugal at +800 (risk $ 100 to win $ 800) at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas. In addition, I invested in Spain at +700. That’s been the extent of my Euro futures wagers.
Current odds have Portugal and Spain xx. In To Reach Final odds, the Portuguese are xx, and the Spanish . Should that be the finale, profit on both would be guaranteed.
The brackets would have to fall a certain way, of course, but they did for us last summer in the Women’s World Cup. We had both Spain and England, and the Spanish beat the British for the title.
Some game action will be gauged how Euro 2024 progresses.
Euro 2024 Golden Boot odds
Favorites for the Golden Boot (highest scorer) include Belgian Romelu Lukaku, who scored 14 times in eight qualifiers, Frenchman Kylian Mbappé (nine in eight games) and Briton Harry Kane (eight in eight).
I’ll pass on those squads to win it all, though, for various reasons.
Belgium’s “golden generation” has mostly moved on, having won no silverware. It matches the Netherlands in rarely seeming to gel on the grand stage, as if their star players’ DNA doesn’t allow them to mesh when most needed.
Mbappé is a menacing tank down the left wing, but he’s finally untethered himself from Paris Saint-Germain in France; we see his joy of landing at Real Madrid, 15-time Champions League victor, as dominating his thoughts.
England, poor England
John Murray, the SuperBook’s director of race and sports, is mystified why the Three Lions, with the abundance of talent they always feature in the Premier League, are not consistent winners on the grandest stages.
They’ve won a solitary World Cup, when they played host in 1966. They’ve never won Euro; they hosted the 2020 version, which was pandemic-delayed a year and played in 2021, and lost to Italy on penalty kicks at Wembley.
Mention penalty kicks to a Briton of any age and expect a Shepherd’s Pie right in the kisser. It’s a sad theme with several chapters.
A great pal from Scotland is a futebol expert, and whenever I inform him that I have cash on the Three Lions, he just shrugs. Mate, he says, why didn’t you just give me the money?
Albania, a live Euro 2024 underdog?
Albania is a longshot worth considering, in the proper way. In qualifying, the other guys mustered just 0.87 goals plus assists, over 90 minutes. That is elite, a figure less than 1 also achieved by England, France, Belgium and, of course, Portugal.
The Albanians, however, were randomly plopped into Group B, the dastardly Group of Death with Spain, Italy and Croatia.
To win it all, Albania’s odds are . Avoid that one. A key match, however, occurs on Day Two, June 15, Italy vs. Albania in Westfalenstadion in Dortmund, Germany’s largest stadium that holds 81,365.
The Italians have missed the past two World Cups, absolute national embarrassments. Gli Azzurri did win in England in 2021, but a loss to Albania would be another low blow.
Between Thursday and Sunday, Italy lost defenders Francesco Acerbi (groin) and Giorgio Scalvini (left ACL), who scored for Atalanta on Sunday before suffering the injury attempting a tackle.
Albania’s 34-year-old Etrit Berisha was one of four keepers who started at least five qualifying matches and did not sustain a single loss.
The others are Mike Maignan of France, Horatiu Moldovan of Romania and Portugal’s Costa.
Live odds have Italy as the favorite in that match, in regulation plus added time, draw at +360 and Albania at . Splitting a half-unit between draw and Albania would guarantee profit should the Italians sputter.
O Ronaldo
Cristiano’s 2½-year contract, valued at more than $ 200 million, with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia ends next season, but he’s finagling for an extension. That would bridge him to the next World Cup, in 2026.
Since Aug. 18, in all competitions, the striker has gone scoreless in consecutive matches only twice. He has tallied 40 goals and 12 assists, and his club team went 26-4-4, finishing second to Al-Hilal (31-0-3) in the nation’s top-flight Pro League.
He’s played in 34 matches since Sept. 1, tasting defeat only three times. Ronaldo is +1200 at DraftKings to win the Golden Boot in Germany, and in the experience-plus-talent-plus-value equation, there is no better choice.
Euro 2024 schedule, sites, and TV coverage
The competition kicks off with host Germany facing Scotland on Friday, June 14, and concludes with the final on July 14.
There are six groups of four teams playing in 10 venues across Germany. The top two in each group, plus the best four third-place finishers, advance to the knockout stage.
Fox and its of family of networks have TV coverage in the US.
Euro 2024: Where to bet
Here’s a list of the best sportsbooks and betting promos in your state for Euro 2024. Pick one, or more than one, that’s right for you, and join the Euro 2024 wagering fun.
