Wales National Team World Cup Betting
Wales had to wait a little longer to punch its ticket to the World Cup than most teams. Due to the situation in the Ukraine, the Welsh had to wait a few months to take on the winner of Scotland and Ukraine for the last European playoff spot. After beating Austria 2-1 in Cardiff in late March, they weren’t able to face Scotland or Ukraine until June. Ukraine upset Scotland 3-1 in Glasgow on June 1 to set up the showdown with Wales in Cardiff on June 5, and the Dragons ended up being the 30th team to qualify for the World Cup after a 1-0 win over Ukraine. The lone goal was an own goal, but Wales will take it.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will begin on Monday, November 21, and run through the final on Sunday, December 18. Every match will either be on FOX or FS1 this year.
Manager: Ryan Giggs
Nickname: The Dragons
Confederation: UEFA (Europe)
FIFA Ranking: 18 (March 2022)
Wales World Cup Betting Odds
To Win Group B: +550
To Win 2022 World Cup: +17500
*Odds as of June 6, 2022
Wales Group Stage Schedule
United States vs. Wales, Monday, November 21, 2022, 2 p.m. ET, at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan (FOX)
Wales vs. Iran, Friday, November 25, 2022, 5 a.m. ET, at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan (FS1)
Wales vs. England, Tuesday, November 29, 2022, 2 p.m. ET, at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan (FS1)
History at the World Cup
Appearances: 2 (first in 1958)
Best Result: Quarter-finals (1958)
This will be Wales’ second trip to the World Cup, but the Welsh haven’t made it to this stage since 1958. They weren’t supposed to qualify for that World Cup as they had already been eliminated from contention. However, teams kept refusing to play Israel for political reasons, and FIFA was insistent that Israel had to win its way into the World Cup. After Belgium became the final team to refuse to play Israel, Wales was asked to play against the country for the right to play in the World Cup. The Welsh beat Israel 2-0 home and away to make their first World Cup appearance.
Wales failed to win a match in the Group Stage, settling for draws with Hungary, Mexico, and Sweden. They would have defeated Mexico if not for an 89th minute goal from El Tri, but those three results meant that they had to face Hungary in a playoff for the right to advance to the knockout rounds. Hungary took a 1-0 lead into halftime on Wales, but the Dragons responded with two second half goals to advance to the quarterfinals. There, they had the unenviable task of facing Brazil, yet they held their own and lost 1-0 the champions after a bit of brilliance from Pele in the 66th minute.
What to Watch
We know that Wales can compete against the best teams in the world after the Dragons made it to the semifinals of Euro 2016. Captain Gareth Bale must be playing well up top for Wales to make it out of Group B though. Bale is one of the most dangerous strikers in the world, and he has netted 38 goals in 104 matches for his home country. The captain is capable of little spurts of magic, and he will be leaned on heavily because there isn’t a lot of talent up front aside from Bale.
The only other player with more than eight goals is midfielder Aaron Ramsey. The former Arsenal man spent last year with Rangers in the Scottish Premier League, and he is on the downslope of his career. Ramey is not the playmaker in the midfield that he once was for Wales, so this team is desperate to find another player that can complement Bale on the attack.
Wales has a rough and tumble defense that isn’t afraid to be physical and turn the game into a slog. Ben Davies and Ethan Ampadu are the top players in the back line, but Chris Gunter is the leader with 108 caps. Wayne Hennessy figures to be the starting goalkeeper too.
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