World Cup betting special

By Come On Boro.com
November 9 2005

It's only every four years and it's the greatest sporting event on earth. But it's most certainly not a wide open competition and there's money to be made at the bookies by applying a simple form of logic based on past performance.

NOTE 9-11-05: THIS BET IS NO LONGER VALID AS THE OFFER FROM VICTOR CHANDLER IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE. WE WILL BE REWORKING THIS BET IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE SO PLEASE KEEP CHECKING BACK.

The World Cup, La Copa Mundial is the biggest tournament on earth and probably the most predictable as well. Did you know that only seven countries have ever won the most prestigious award in football?

But more importantly, whenever the competition has been staged in Europe, it has been won by a European team every time bar 1958 when European football was in serious decline and the best ever Brazil side lifted the trophy in Sweden.

The competition has never been won by a European team when it has been staged outside of Europe.

Things are a little different these days with top South American players plying their trade in Europe and therefore becoming more acclimatised to northern hemisphere conditions. However, it won't be enough for them to take the trophy home next year.

The World Cup will be won by a top European team because that is what always happens when the competition is staged in Europe.

Forget current form. The top sides are saving it for the real thing and it's an absolute certainty that one of the following teams will be lifting the trophy next July.

Germany
England
Italy
France
Holland

There are other good European contenders as well, for example Sweden, Spain and Portugal but these sides have a total of no international titles between them and this is because the big five mentioned above always have that little something extra when it comes down to the crunch. Next year will be no different.

And the good news is that if you agree with what I am saying, you can edge your bets and make a profit if any of the big five European sides take the title, which of course is a nailed on certainty.

Take a look at the odds that Total Bet are offering for an outright win.

Germany 7/1
England 8/1
Holland 9/1
Italy 9/1
France 10/1

I've backed each of the five with a straight fifty, which means that I have laid out a total of £250. Here's what I get when the Euro boys romp home with the cup.

Germany £400
England £450
Holland £500
Italy £500
France £550

The above figures include my original £50 stake back and you also get a free £25 bet with Total Bet which you can use on any sports event.

However, if you don't think that it is such a dead cert that the cup will be won by a European team, there is a way to cover yourself completely and you can do this by taking advantage of the free bets on offer from our selected bookies here.

Back Germany @ 7/1 with Total Bet
Back England @ 8/1 with UK Betting
Back Holland @ 9/1 with VC Bet
Back Italy @ 9/1 with Coral
Back France @ 10/1 with Bet 365

You have now accumulated a total of £195 in free bets, just by opening the accounts and placing the relevant bets. Here's the breakdown of the free bets that you will receive.

Total Bet - £25
UK Betting - £25
VC Bet - £25 (half of your £50 stake)
Coral - £20
Bet 365 - £100 (in units of £20)

That gives you three free bets of £25 and six of twenty. If you use these free bets to back Brazil and Argentina, the only two teams from outside Europe with a hope of lifting the trophy, then you will actually still win on the whole bet.

But I'm not doing that. I'm so convinced that the cup will not be leaving Europe that I'll be using the free bets to double up on the European teams, giving me mass profit when one of them does win the tournament.

Here are two guides as to how you can make the free bets work best for you:

If you agree with me that a European team will win the trophy

Back Germany @ 7/1 with Total Bet
Back England @ 8/1 with UK Betting
Back Holland @ 9/1 with VC Bet
Back Italy @ 9/1 with Coral
Back France @ 10/1 with Bet 365

Use your free bets as follows

Total Bet - £25 on Germany @ 7/1
UK Betting - £25 on Italy @ 9/1
VC Bet - £25 on Holland @ 9/1
Coral - £20 on England @ 8/1
Bet 365 - 5 x £20 bets - one on each team.

Your winnings table now reads like this

Germany £705
England £770
Holland £910
Italy £905
France £750

If you don't want to write off Brazil or Argentina completely

Use your free bets as follows

Total Bet - £25 on Brazil @ 3/1
UK Betting - £25 on Brazil @ 3/1
UK Betting - £25 on Argentina @ 13/2
Coral - £20 on Brazil @ 3/1
Bet 365 - 5 x £20 bets - one on each on Argentina and Brazil and the rest to use as you wish.

Your winnings table now reads like this

Brazil £ 270
Argentina £ 292.50
Germany £400
England £450
Holland £500
Italy £500
France £550

Plus, you still have three free bets from Bet 365 to use as you wish.

So you just can't lose on the World Cup. The worst case scenario is that you lay out £250, Brazil win and you make £20 plus three free bets from Bet 365.

It is possible but highly unlikely that the odds will change between now and June but you should check before placing bets.

If you already have one or more of the accounts that we are using here, you will not qualify for the free bets. If that is the case, we can rework the bet by finding you a different bookmaker. Just get in touch if that is the case and we'll get right back to you.

We are also happy to hear from you if you want to ask any further questions about the bet. Click on the banners below to place your bets.