USA and Mexico both scrambled through their CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals but El Tri have been more impressive overall during this tournament. Home advantage will also mean nothing for the Stars and Stripes as their opponents are assured of strong support in Nevada.
Mexico have been crowned CONCACAF Gold Cup champions four times in the last six renewals and look on course to reach the final again. Canada head into this semi in good spirits but are 59 spots lower down the FIFA rankings and that gulf in class is expected to tell in Houston.
Qatar have been entertaining guests at the CONCACAF Gold Cup but face a tough test when taking on USA in the semi-finals in Texas. The hosts have reached the final 11 times in 15 renewals of this tournament, including when narrowly beaten by Mexico in the 2019 decider.
The CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-finals conclude with arguably the pick of the last-eight matches when the United States face Jamaica. At least one of these teams have reached each of the last eight finals and this is a repeat of the 2017 showpiece, which the USA won 2-1.
Canada were one of the most impressive teams during the group stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup and may feel aggrieved to be seen as the underdogs for their quarter-final in the eyes of the bookmakers. The Reds enjoyed two comfortable victories before a narrow loss denied them top spot in their group, although it should be noted Costa Rica were one of only two teams to progress with three wins out of three.
Mexico head into the quarter-finals as the 6/4 favourites in the CONCACAF Gold Cup winner odds and will hope to prove why when they face 22/1 outsiders Honduras. Mexico have won the Gold Cup a record 11 times including three of the last five editions so there is plenty of reason to think they are the team to beat.
Qatar are playing at the CONCACAF Gold Cup as part of their preparations for hosting next year’s World Cup and it has been so far so good. They qualified for the quarter-finals as winners of Group D with seven points from their three matches and are favourites to reach the last four.
With Euro 2020 now over, attention is shifting to the upcoming domestic football season but the competition’s impact may be felt here as well. Until the first ball of a new campaign is kicked, the attention of fans tends to be fixated on the transfer market, where the Euro 2020 stars will have drawn the attention of the game’s big spenders.
The delayed European Championship captured our attention this summer, with domestic football taking a back seat after a long season. Club and league rivalries are still bubbling away though, so we tracked the fortunes of every player during the tournament in our Euro 2020 stats to see who contributed the most to it.
England are 13/2 in bwin’s 2022 World Cup winner odds after coming agonisingly close to ending their major trophy drought at the European Championship. The Three Lions broke new ground under Gareth Southgate at Euro 2020, reaching their first major final for 55 years, but football did not return home as Italy claimed a dramatic 3-2 win in a penalty shootout following a tense 1-1 draw.
Italy and England have been the best two teams at Euro 2020 overall and a tight tussle is on the cards in the final. Both sides are strong at the back, have great energy in midfield and proven performers up front but home advantage may just be the deciding factor.
Colombia have looked solid during the Copa America knockout stages and are rated a percentage pick to edge out Peru in the third-place play-off. Some star names will be missing from both teams but Los Cafeteros appear to have the better strength in depth.
We’re focusing on Italy vs England for our latest Build A Bet tips and are eyeing a 9/2 pay-out on Sunday’s Euro 2020 final. Build A Bet is a great feature that allows you to combine selections from the same game into a single bet with bigger returns.
Copa America 2021 started out as a troubled tournament after a change of venue but now has its first dream final since 2007. Each side has been impressive at times and had to battle through some tricky tests, but the stage is set for a classic encounter at the Maracana.