The World Cup group A odds will be the focus of the first of our eight group betting previews for Qatar's 2022 FIFA World Cup.
It will be the first time that the World Cup has been hosted in the Middle East or North Africa which is a nice reminder that this is truly a global event.
Qatar was awarded the rights to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup back in 2010. Now, twelve years later we are finally almost there. The tournament's opening game, between Qatar and Ecuador, takes place on the 20th of November to get us underway.
While a winter World Cup is unfamiliar territory for all of us, now that we’re here let’s enjoy the festival of football that is sure to brighten up our dark winter months.
All the World Cup Group A odds, fixtures and betting can be found below.
What Teams Are In World Cup Group A?
Qatar | Ecuador | Senegal | Netherlands
As always, the World Cup host nation will be playing in group A of the tournament. This year the host country Qatar will be joined by Ecuador from South America, African champions Senegal and the 2010 World Cup finalists the Netherlands.
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Sun, Nov 20th - Qatar vs Ecuador - 4pm - Al Bayt Stadium
Mon, Nov 21st - Senegal vs Netherlands - 4pm - Al Thumana Stadium
Fri, Nov 25th - Qatar vs Senegal - 1pm - Al Thumana Stadium
Fri, Nov 25th - Netherlands vs Ecuador - 4pm - Khalifa International Stadium
Tues, Nov 29th - Netherlands vs Qatar - 3pm - Al Bayt Stadium
Tues, Nov 29th - Ecuador vs Senegal - 3pm - Khalifa International Stadium
World Cup Group Stage Format
The group stages of the World Cup are played in a round-robin format. This means that each team plays the other three teams in their group once.
The two teams with the most points from each group will qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament. If two teams are tied on points, then the team with the better goal difference will advance. If two teams are also tied on goal difference, then goals scored is used to decide who goes through to the knockout phase.
The winner of group A will play the second placed team in group B in the round of 16. Meanwhile, the second placed team in group A will play the winner of group B in the round of 16.
What Are The World Cup Group A Stadiums?
Al Bayt Stadium | Al Thumana Stadium | Khalifa International Stadium
There are three stadiums which will host the six group A games at the World Cup. The Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor will host the opening game between Qatar and Ecuador. The other two stadiums to host group A games will be the Al Thumana Stadium located in Doha and Doha’s Khalifa International Stadium.
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World Cup Group A Betting Odds
In group A the decisive favourites to win the group are the Netherlands at odds of 4/9. The Dutch are the highest ranked team in the group at 8th in FIFA’s world rankings while they are the 6th ranked side among the European nations.
The second favourite in group B is the African Cup of Nations champion Senegal at 7/2. The African nation are the highest ranked team in their continent and 18th in the world rankings.
Coming in at third in the group A odds is Ecuador who you can back at 6/1. The Ecuadorians come into the tournament as the 7th ranked national team in South America and 44th in the world.
The FIFA World Cup host nation Qatar are seen as the biggest longshot to be group A winners by our odds makers. Qatar are set as 14/1 to win group A. This Qatar team are 5th ranked in Asia and the 50th ranked nation in the world.
Click Below To Check Out All Our World Cup Group A Betting Odds
World Cup Group A Prediction
Group A Winner - Senegal @ 7/2
It feels like Senegal are being undervalued in the betting market here. The Netherlands being group favourites is understandable and they deserve their favourites tag but 4/9 seems a bit short.
The last time Senegal played in a major tournament was when they won at the African Cup of Nations. Of course, the World Cup is a step up, but this team has two things going in their favour. 1. They have star power in the likes of Sadio Mane, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy. 2. They play well together as a team.
Group A 2nd Place - The Netherlands
The Netherlands could well win this group but if Senegal do go on to top them then it’s hard to see the Dutch finishing any worse than second in group A. If this squad don’t qualify for the knockout phase, then it truly would be one of the shocks of the World Cup.
They come into this tournament in good form too with four wins and one draw in their last five games.
Group A 3rd Place - Ecuador
This Ecuador side could be a dark horse for group A. Are they the best side in the group? No. They're not the second-best side either, but they can compete with both the Netherlands and Senegal.
If they can steal a win against either of those sides and beat a Qatar team that they are clearly more talented than then you never know. As we’ve seen before at World Cups, anything can happen.
Group A 4th Place - Qatar
While Qatar is not traditionally a formidable footballing nation, they do have World Cup history on their side. Every FIFA World Cup host bar South Africa in 2010 have managed to qualify from their group.
Unfortunately, this team looks like it is destined for the same fate as South Africa with an early group stage exit. The crowd will be behind them but it likely won’t be enough to account for the gulf in class between themselves and the other nations.
Check Out All Our World Cup Betting Markets HERE
*Prices subject to fluctuation
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