Euro 2021 At a Glance
At last! After a crushing 1-year delay, the greatest European footballing competition (bar the Europa League) is finally upon us! The 2021 Euro kicks off on June 11th, and we are ready to roll into a summer of football, madness, pain, suffering, and the inevitable English National Team meltdown.
If you were looking for a guide to this year’s Euro and a guide to gambling away every last cent you have, you’ve come to the right place. There isn’t enough time or attention span to read through every last prediction and speculate on every lineup for the Euro just yet, so below is an overview of how the tournament works, how the groups for the Euro stack up, and the bookmaker’s odds for a winner.
How the Euro Works:
-24 qualifying nations go head to head in a month-long tournament for European footballing supremacy.
-There are 6 groups, each consisting of 4 nations. Within the respective groups, each nation plays each other one time.
-The winner and runner-up in each group, as well as the top four best third-placed nations progress to the round of 16. From here, we go into a bracket style single elimination tournament until a champion is crowned.
The Groups
Here is how the groups for Euro 2021 stack up.
The Odds
Full disclosure, I HATE HATE HATE betting on futures. I don’t have the patience to sit throughout an entire tournament or season and hope that my bet from a month ago works out. Im all about that instant gratification, baby! Or in my case, instant depression from an inevitable L. However, if you have the patience to wait a month for your bet to come to fruition, here is what you might like to see…
Odds according to Draft Kings Sportsbook:
France +500
England +550
Belgium +600
Portugal +800
Germany +900
Spain +900
Italy +1100
Netherlands +1400
Denmark +2500
Croatia +4000
Turkey +5000
Switzerland +7000
Sweden +7500
Poland +8000
Austria, Russia, Ukraine, Wales +10000
Czech Republic +15000
Scotland +25000
Finland, Slovakia +30000
Hungary, North Macedonia +50000
A Quick Glance
There is more to come from me in terms of gambling, but highlighted are some of the odds I like most for this Euro…if you are a future better.
Portugal – This team is stacked up front, they are the defending champions, and they have the second-best player on the planet – Cristiano Ronaldo* (we stan Messi here). Let it be know that I have a personal vendetta against this Portugal side and I will be rooting for them to lose each and every match…which is why you should love Portugal at +800. Reasons to dislike Portugal in this tournament are really few and far between…You could point to a semi-weak 2nd CB to Ruben Dias, maybe a slow midfield….but that’s really it. At +800 I love Portugal to win it all.
Italy – After shaming themselves and every Italian on the planet when they missed the last World Cup, Italy are coming back with a strong and exciting team. At +1100 I think Italy might be worth taking a chance on for a flier… Italy are always strong at the back, their midfield is a very technical bunch, and up front the have some real quality. I don’t expect this team to win the Euro, but I expect them to be a pain for other teams to content with. Be on the look out for an up and coming superstar in Chiesa.
Poland – +8000!!! Insulting!!! Poland are a good team!! Did we forget about the most dominant striker in the world at the moment in Robert Lewandowski? Did we forget about uhhhh…..uhh… Szczesny in goal…or Fabianski..also in goal?? Ok, aside from that and maybe Milik up front, the Poland team isn’t really that strong. But +8000?? Throw $5 on them and hope for a miracle…Or use that $5 on something better… like a grande iced oat milk brown sugar vanilla bullshit at Starbucks.
Anyways, those are just a few of the picks that stuck out to me at a glance. If I were you id put the house on Northern Macedonia at +50000…because they have that one guy…that you ALWAYS pack in FIFA…he plays in La Liga, but no one really knows who he is…BUT YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHO IM TALKING ABOUT!!!
Thanks for reading, if you like the blog – you might like the Mostly Soccer Podcast (@soccermostly), found wherever podcast are found. I will be back with more Euro content, but more importantly, more gambling advice to send you broke.
