We’re getting closer to what should be the biggest sports tournament Canada has ever hosted. Granted, we’ll be the co-hosts alongside the United States and Mexico, but the 2026 FIFA World Cup promises to be huge – as long as geopolitics doesn’t get in the way. It all kicks off June 11, then Team Canada will play their first Group Stage match on June 12 at Toronto’s BMO Field, and the FIFA World Cup odds are all set for action at Ozoon.
New records for World Cup betting are set every four years like clockwork, but hosting this event in North America could push the total handle for 2026 well over $200 billion globally. As usual, the titans of Europe and South America are fighting over top spot on the FIFA World Cup odds board here at Ozoon; Spain, the 2010 champions, are +450 favourites at the time of writing, followed by England (1966) at +550 and France (1998, 2018) at +700.
You could make a compelling argument that France are the best value pick at these odds. But let’s turn our attention away from the top World Cup contenders for a moment, and consider five teams that most bettors will be overlooking this year, starting with the longest shots and moving our way up the odds board.
Canada (+25000)
Soccer fans in Canada know the score: These past few years have been very special indeed. It started in 2018 with the hiring of John Herdman as head coach, bringing him over from the successful women’s national team to the men’s side. Then came the “golden generation” of players like left-back Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) and forward Jonathan David (Juventus), who led Canada to just their second World Cup appearance in 2022.
Not that everything’s been smooth since then. Herdman left Canada Soccer in 2023; Jesse Marsch took over the following year, and while there have been some big wins – including two over our US rivals – Canada crashed out in the quarterfinals of the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, losing 6-5 to Guatemala on penalties.
Past is prologue. “Our players understand the moment in front of us,” Marsch told reporters earlier this week during Team Canada’s kit unveiling. All three of our Group Stage matches will be on home soil – starting with a tough test against a stubborn Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Next up will be Qatar on June 18, with Vancouver’s BC Place as the venue. That’s also where Canada will face Switzerland on June 24. Canada may be third favourites at +425 to win this group, but now that the World Cup has expanded to 48 teams, eight of the 12 third-place finishers will advance to the Knockout Stage, which begins with the Round of 32. Chances are Canada will make it in. Anything can happen from there.
Croatia (+10000)
Yugoslavia were World Cup semi-finalists in 1930 and 1962, but the fall of the Soviet Union saw the country broken up into its constituent republics – including Croatia, who have ascended to even greater heights despite their much smaller population (3.9 million at last count). The Vatreni reached the World Cup final in 2018, and placed third in both 1998 and 2022.
Less is expected of the Checkered Ones in 2026. However, Luka Modric (AC Milan) is still their captain, appearing in his fifth World Cup at age 40, and Zlatko Dalic is still their head coach. They’re joined by a pair of Manchester City mainstays in midfielder Mateo Kovacic and defender Josko Gvardiol, with Kovacic and Mario Pasalic (Atalanta) joining Modric as the beating heart of Dalic’s 4-2-3-1 formation.
Age is obviously a big concern for Croatia supporters. This team operates at a much slower pace now that Modric (40), forward Ivan Perisic (37) and midfielder Andrej Kramaric (34) are getting on in years. Then you have their very tough draw into Group L, which includes England as well as Ghana (+15000 to win the World Cup) and Panama (+75000).
These are the kind of product defects you’ll find when you shop for betting value. But again, third place should be good enough to advance this year, and while the summer heat might be problematic for those oldsters, Croatia get to play their Group Stage matches in Arlington (at the cozy AT&T Stadium), Toronto and Philadelphia. Mexico isn’t on their trip planner until the Knockout Stage.
Senegal (+10000)
Lather, rinse and repeat for the champions of African soccer. Make that the ex-champions: Senegal were stripped of their AFCON title nearly two months after their 1-0 victory over Morocco, after officials ruled the Lions forfeited when they left the pitch during stoppage time to protest Morocco being awarded a penalty kick.
This development might put head coach Pape Thiaw in hot water – he’s the one who sent his players off. It could also motivate Senegal to put their best foot forward at the World Cup. They’ve already shown they can compete on the global stage, making the quarter-finals in 2002 after beating France during the Group Stage. And their current FIFA ranking at No. 12 is the highest they’ve ever been.
Having said that, Senegal sit at No. 17 on the World Football Elo Ratings, the lowest of the three +10000 outsiders on our list. That’s still up 15 spots from one year ago, spurred in part by their historic 3-1 win over England last June – the first ever for an African side in 22 attempts, and it happened at the City Ground in Nottingham.
Senegal also have to escape Group I, where they’ll be matched up against France, Norway (+2500 to take the Cup), and Iraq.
Switzerland (+10000)
You can’t have a list of World Cup underdogs without including Switzerland. They have a long history of wreaking havoc, reaching the quarter-finals three times (1934, 1938, 1954); the A-Team did the same at both Euro 2020 and Euro 2024, putting them on track for another deep run this summer for manager Murat Yakin.
There is one problem here for Canadian bettors: Switzerland are with us in Group B. Conveniently enough, that will be the last Group Stage match for each side, and they could find themselves in a situation where a draw would help both reach the knockouts.
The A-Team keep making it this far because they use the same consistent grind every time they take the pitch, emphasizing defence and possession with the occasional burst of verticality. Manuel Akanji (Inter Milan, on loan from Manchester City) will be one of those defenders hoarding the ball and probing judiciously in Yakin’s preferred 3-4-2-1 formation.
At the next level, we have Granit Xhaka (Sunderland), the anchor of Switzerland’s midfield for the past 15 years. Their attack fizzles from there; playing Switzerland is a lot like trying to win a chess match with the White pieces, but against a grandmaster. Watch for low scores and probably a draw or two during the Group Stage, with penalty kicks deciding their fate in the knockouts.
The Netherlands (+2500)
Historically, the Netherlands have been lumped together with the rest of Europe’s soccer royalty – but they’ve never won the big one. They came achingly close in 1974 and 1978, and reached the final again in 2010 before settling for third place in 2014. Now, after their latest rebuild, it’s time for a new generation to lead the Oranje on their World Cup quest.
It does help to have an old hand on the tiller. Ronald Koeman returned in 2023 to manage the Netherlands after doing so from 2018 to 2020 before leaving for Barcelona. That tenure ended unceremoniously the following year, but the latest retirement by Louis van Gaal left a seat open, and Dutch fans were very pleased to see Koeman bring his old 4-3-3 formation back with him.
Putting four men on the back line is easy when one of them is Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), one of the greatest defenders in the history of the game – and the perfect instrument for Koeman, himself a former sweeper for the national team. Van Dijk plays a different role as a centre-back, but he’s one of the craftiest there is, firing uncanny passes to the likes of midfielder Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona) and forward Cody Gakpo (also from Liverpool).
Nothing will come easy this summer, but the Netherlands do get to play in Group F, where Japan (+10000 to win the Cup) figure to be their toughest test ahead of Tunisia (+40000) and Sweden. On top of that, the Dutch have all three of their Group Stage matches in the US, while the others cross the border at least once to play in Guadalupe, Mexico.
Other Contenders
There are other worthy contenders for our list of World Cup value picks – like Belgium and Colombia at +4000 apiece, although geopolitics could once again spoil things for Los Cafeteros. But these are the five teams we’ve chosen for battle here at Ozoon. Head over to our soccer page for the latest World Cup betting lines, and keep checking in for fresh odds and analysis as we get closer to kick-off.
