Uruguay 2018 World Cup Odds

Producing two of the most infamous moments in recent World Cup history in their last two Finals campaigns, Uruguay is back in the tournament after a fairly undramatic qualifying run. In his 12th consecutive year as manager of the national team, the great Oscar Tabarez will be hoping that stability continues in Russia but with Luis Suarez on his squad, there’s always a chance for teeth to gnash.

Jokes aside, Uruguay has an illustrious, rich history at this tournament and the upcoming competition in Russia offers an opportunity for the hosts of the inaugural World Cup to put some of that international football embarrassment to bed.

Facing an extremely favorable draw, Uruguay managed to fall into what most consider to be the softest group in the entire field and expectations are high heading into their first match against an Egyptian side that could be without Mohamed Salah.

Let’s have a look at some of their betting odds going into Russia and see if we can’t find some value.

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Uruguay’s Odds to win world cup: +3300

The 21st FIFA-ranked Uruguayans and two-time Sportsbooks of the World Cup (1930, 1950) are relative long shots to take home the gold at +3300 but they do have the best odds out of Group A with Russia, Egypt and Saudi Arabia installed at +4000, +15000 and +100000, respectively.

Finishing fourth in 2010 and dipping out in the Round of 16 in Brazil after Suarez’ unceremonious departure, Uruguay certainly has the pedigree and talent to make a deep run in Russia.

While they’ve lacked depth up the middle in past tournaments, Tabarez has empowered youngsters to take more important roles in Uruguay’s attack, helping to balance a squad that’s been justifiably described as top-heavy in previous competitions.

They’ll still require tremendous efforts from Suarez and PSG forward Edinson Cavani to advance to the late stages this summer but at +3300 Uruguay has some serious bite if Luis can reserve his highlights for goal-scoring.

Full odds to win the 2018 World Cup

Uruguay’s Odds to win Group A: EVEN

Although they’ve won their group just once since 1954, Uruguay is – in my opinion – a virtual lock to take top spot in Group A even with Russia’s home-court advantage. The Egyptians have a chance to take the sting out of the South Americans’ attack and limit them to a draw in the group but I like the matchups in Uruguay’s final two fixtures vs Saudi Arabia and Russia and I have them pegged for a seven-point, first-place finish.

Full World Cup group odds

Uruguay’s Best World Cup Bets:

Stage of Elimination (Round of 16) +165

If everything goes to plan, Uruguay will meet either Portugal or Spain in the Round of 16 with the Sportsbook of Group A set to play the Group B runners-up and vice versa – not an incredibly enviable position for the Sky Blue.

At +165 we’re getting good odds to hedge our bet if Uruguay comes out of the gates on fire but with a matchup with one of the Iberian nations looming, a Round of 16 elimination seems more than likely.

Uruguay’s Players to Watch:

Luis Suarez (obviously):

Chomping at the bit to make amends for past World Cup indiscretions, the 31-year-old Barcelona striker can either be a key or a barrier to his team’s success and he has +3300 odds to win the Golden Ball award as the tournament’s best all-around player. The troubled star’s massively productive and relatively tame tenure with Barcelona has made the odds of another incident unlikely but that’s not saying a lot when you consider that over 100 bettors cashed in on +17500 odds for Suarez to bite someone in Brazil.

Odds to be top goalscorer at the World Cup

Uruguay’s Road to Russia:

As noted in the intro, Uruguay had an uncharacteristically easy time of things qualifying for the World Cup, finishing second in South America behind Brazil, avoiding the drama experienced by Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Chile in the late stages of CONMEBOL qualification.

Relying on that core of young, attack-minded midfielders, the Uruguayans racked up 32 goals in 18 qualifiers, seemingly moving away from the defend-and-counter mentality we’d grown accustomed to seeing from the Sky Blue in the Luis Suarez era.

It could be a challenge for the beautiful football they’ve been playing to shine through against a defensive outfit like Egypt but I’m expecting a thriller in Samara when Uruguay and an equally attack-heavy Russian side clash on the final day of group play with first place and/or a berth into the knockout round potentially on the line.

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