The World Cup is here, which means it is officially time for casual soccer fans to pretend they totally understand group-stage math while asking, “Wait, how many teams make it out again?” Luckily, Stephie Smalls brought in professional soccer betting adult Malcolm Bamford to guide everyone through the beautiful, bloated, 48-team betting buffet.
On this episode of The Stephie Smalls Show, Malcolm gives Stephie a full World Cup Betting 101 crash course, covering futures, dark horses, group-stage value, USA expectations, and which teams might be priced like they have Lionel Messi hiding in a trench coat.
Malcolm likes France as his pick to win it all, with Spain right there among the top contenders. But the real fun starts when he digs into the value board. Colombia comes up as an undervalued South American option, while Senegal gets the longshot treatment at a spicy 125-to-1. That is not a bet. That is a lifestyle choice with cleats.
The USA discussion is realistic but not depressing, which feels like progress. Malcolm sees the USMNT getting out of the group and possibly reaching the Round of 16, but warns that home-field advantage may not matter as much as American fans want it to.
Other highlights include Morocco potentially challenging Brazil, Australia as a sneaky group price, Japan as a fun team to back, and Norway being described as wildly overrated at 25-to-1. Erling Haaland may be a Viking, but apparently even Vikings need teammates.
Malcolm also gives out specific bets, including Spain/Uruguay in Group H, Heung-Min Son as South Korea’s top goalscorer, Ecuador to go out on penalties, Luis Suarez for Colombia as a Golden Boot longshot, and Mikel Oyarzabal as a Spain hedge.
It is a World Cup betting primer for soccer diehards, football-first Americans, and anyone who wants to sweat Ecuadorian penalty kicks like their mortgage is wearing shin guards.
