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FIFA World Cup Betting: It’s been an incredible past few seasons for Icelandic soccer. Historically, Iceland has been one of the minnows of European soccer. The island nation of 300,000 just doesn’t have as big of a talent pool to draw from and didn’t qualify for a European Championship until 2016.
Iceland made an incredible impression during its debut at the 2016 Euros. The country was seen as a major longshot to do anything in France, but they ended up being the story of the competition. Iceland drew Portugal and Hungary in its first two matches, and then scored against Austria in injury time to notch a win and send the country into the knockout stages.
There, Iceland pulled off one of the biggest stunners ever. Iceland were major underdogs to England in the Round of 16, but goals from Ragnar Sigurdsson in the 6th minute and Kolbeinn Sigborsson in the 18th minute gave Iceland an incredible win over England. They were thumped by France in the Quarterfinals, but Iceland sent a message to the world with its performance.
Once every four years, the world's most popular game has its biggest tournament. The World Cup is as big as it gets all over the world, especially for the 32 countries who have earned the right to partake in this tournament. We think of the World Cup as a four-week tournament in June and July every few years, but this is actually a tournament where every FIFA team in the world has a chance to make it to the big stage.
The 2018 World Cup in Russia will begin on Thursday, June 14 and run through the final on Sunday, July 15. All of the action can be seen on FOX, FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2.
Iceland Betting Odds
Odds on Iceland to win Group D: +1215
Odds on Iceland to win 2018 World Cup: +20000
Matches
Iceland vs. Argentina, Saturday, June 16, 2018, 9 a.m. ET Otkrytie Arena (Moscow)
Iceland vs. Nigeria, Friday, June 22, 2018, 11 a.m. ET Volgograd Arena (Volgograd)
Iceland vs. Croatia, Tuesday, June 26, 2018, 2 p.m. ET Rostov Arena (Rostov-on-Don)
Manager
Heimir Hallgrimsson
History at the World Cup
Iceland is one of a handful of countries making its first appearance at the World Cup. The country became the smallest one ever to qualify for the World Cup after finishing atop a group that included Croatia, Ukraine, and Turkey in qualifying. The defense was the key during its run and will be again during the World Cup.
Player to Watch
Gylfi Sigurdsson is the playmaker for Iceland. He is the one player other teams must focus on, especially when Iceland go on the counter. Sigurdsson has been a star in the Premier League, making things happen for Swansea and Everton after a stint at Tottenham.
Unlike other midfielders who are table-setters, Sigurdsson has proven to be adept at finishing. He is Iceland’s second-leading goal scorer with 18 goals in 55 caps, and he is very good on set pieces. Iceland is mostly going to pack it in at the back, but Sigurdsson makes this team a threat to score.
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