The 2014 World Cup officially kicks off tomorrow with a matchup between Brazil and Croatia in São Paulo. If you’re even slightly interested in betting on this match or any of the others coming up in the World Cup, it’s time to find a safe place to do your betting.

After falling to the Netherlands in their opening game of the 2014 World Cup Spain has dropped from a -150 favorite to a +1200 underdog on the odds to win Group B at the tournament, with the Dutch taking over as the -450 favorites on that odds list at Bovada. In 2014, Brazil hosts the top soccer nations and betting on the World Cup becomes a preoccupation with fans looking for every scrap of information they can find. Of course, others simply bet on. With the summer fast approaching, Soccerlens discusses the favourites for World Cup glory, with Brazil, Germany, Spain and Argentina going under the scope.

All the biggest sports betting sites are accepting real money bets on the World Cup as of today. It doesn’t matter if you live in the United States, the UK or elsewhere – there’s a site that’s ready to take your business.

For those who are new to online sports betting:

If you’re completely new to online sports betting, fear not. You’re at the right place. I know a lot of people first get into sports betting during major events such as the World Cup and Kentucky Derby. Here’s the deal: if you live in the USA, you can only bet at specific sites that accept Americans. If you live elsewhere, you have a different set of sites to choose from.

The legality of online sports betting in the USA isn’t very well defined, but millions of Americans bet on the World Cup and other events every year at gambling sites. The laws on the books seem to target banking institutions and those who operate sportsbooks, not individual bettors. Seriously, don’t worry about it. I’ve been betting on sports for close to a decade now and haven’t even heard of someone getting in trouble for betting on sports in the US.

Best US Sportsbook for the World Cup: Bovada.lv

Bovada.lv is the easy choice for all my American readers. Bovada is US-friendly and it is taking bets on the World Cup right now. All you need to do is sign up for an account and make a deposit. Here’s what Bovada has for the first matchup right now.

Point Spread

• Brazil: -1.5 EVEN
• Croatia: +1.5 -120

Moneyline

• Brazil: -375
• Croatia: +1000
• Draw: +475

Total (2.5)

• Over: EVEN
• Under: -120

I’ve been betting at and promoting Bovada since the site first went live and I’ve always been impressed with how they run things over there. Bovada is one of the fastest-paying sportsbooks in the US and it has an excellent credit card acceptance rate for deposits.

Best International Book for the World Cup: Bet365.com

Bet365 is my favorite non-US betting site by a long shot. The company was established in 1974 and remains privately owned to this day. They are headquartered in the UK and have a perfect record of hosting fair bets, paying winners and protecting customer privacy.

2014 World Cup Betting

Best of all, Bet365 takes football very seriously. In the first World Cup matchup alone, Bet365.com already has well over a dozen different types of bets. You can bet on the exact score, the point total, first/last/top goalscorers and more. There are even Asian handicaps and prop bets such as who will kick off.

As far as the straight-up bets go, here’s what Bet365 has for Brazil vs. Croatia.

• Brazil: 1/3
• Croatia: 12/1
• Draw: 4/1

Bet365 will also be offering in-play bets on all World Cup matchups. If you keep the sportsbook open in your browser, you can watch matches and place bets after they have already started. You can bet on who will score the next goal, who will win the match at updated odds and more. In-play betting is some of the most exciting stuff to come out of online bookmaking in recent years.

The FIFA World Cup 2014 is rapidly approaching, with the first match scheduled at Brazil’s Arena Itaquera in Sao Paulo for the 12th of June. Twelve Stadiums in twelve different host cities are preparing to welcome teams from all over the globe. Thousands of fans from right across the world will be travelling to Brazil to support their teams and feel the electric energy at a live match, with countless others who will tune in to their TV at home or head to a pub to catch the games live.

32 countries will take part in the competition. The only new team is Bosnia Herzegovina. All other teams have played in the World Cup previously. 64 matches will be played in total.

The World Cup attracts bets from people from all over the world and from all walks of life. Keen betters will have a go, as well as people who fancy a small flutter on such a famous and popular event. Betting companies are constantly changing the odds, and the adrenalin is only set to heighten when the competition actually starts. Bookmakers are already taking bets as to who will win. Bookies are also offering different odds.

The World Cup is the biggest betting event of all time, largely due to the global participation and interest. Millions of dollars, pounds, euros, and other currencies will be spend on World Cup bets.

Bets can be placed in the traditional way with a betting slip in a walk in bookmakers shop, as well as via a variety of online bookmakers. Some large online companies are even offering free bets, in an attempt to draw people in to placing more bets. Some also give a certain amount of free bets based upon how much has been spent on paid bets. Online bookmakers make it really easy for people from all over the world to place a bet, with translations, easy to use websites, currency convertors, and a variety of deposit methods.

The odds will continue to change as the competition gets underway and teams gain points, get knocked out of the competition, and show their skills and prowess on the pitch. Of course, as well as being able to bet on the winners of the final, bets are also being taken for the winners of individual matches, scores, who will score the most goals in a game and in the tournament, and various other places in the tournament.

There are odds for who will be the champions of each group. For example, the current favourite to win Group E is France. They will play against Switzerland, Honduras, and Ecuador. The odds are around 10/11 for France to win the group. Switzerland’s odds are around 14/5. Whilst the team from Ecuador will be more accustomed to playing in similar conditions as to those in Brazil, their current highest odds are only 9/2. It is predicted that Honduras will find it very difficult to even win a single point.

Within Group F, Argentina is the favourite to win the group. They will play against Iran, Nigeria, and Bosnia Herzegovina. The odds of Argentina winning the group are 2/7. Nigeria and Bosnia Herzegovina are very close to finishing second, although Nigeria is the present favourite to finish in second place. Bosnia Herzegovina has odds of 11/10 to come second place in the group, and the odds of Nigeria coming second are around 7/5. The odds of Iran winning the group are 80/1 and it is doubted that they will even score a point.

Popular bookies include Paddypower, Ladbrokes, bet365, WilliamHill, BetVictor, BetFred, and Coral.

The current favourite to win is the host country of Brazil. They are an incredibly strong and talented team, and will benefit from playing on their home turf and with their country close to hand and right behind them all the way. They have already won five previous World Cup competitions.

Brazil also holds the record for winning the most matches within an individual World Cup competition; they won 7 games in 2002.

Some people are predicting a final between Brazil and Germany.
Other popular teams to stand a chance at winning include the neighbouring South American country of Argentina, the current champions of Spain from Europe, and another European team of Germany.

2014 World Cup Groups

The average opening odds on Brazil are 4.5, Argentina 6, Germany 12, and Spain 8. Belgium’s opening odds are averaged at 251. Others include Holland at 13, Italy at 21, England at 15, Colombia at 151, and Uruguay at 41.
Belgium is seen as being the dark horse of the competition, being fifth favourite to win. It is possible that they may just sneak up and pull of a big win.

Italy, the Netherlands, and England have seen their betting odds becoming slimmer, as a result of tough draws. Favourable draws for Argentina, Colombia, and Belgium saw their odds improve.

It is suggested that savvy and shrewd betters can make more money and find better value by placing their bets away from the traditionally strong teams such as Brazil, Spain, and Germany. It is recommended that people bet away from the masses; with so many people betting on the bigger teams the amount of money being spent is overwhelming.

More tips will emerge as the games become closer, and even more will be produced after the competition starts. Keen betting enthusiasts should keep their eyes and ears open for new tips and watch the changing odds with interest.