- After going into the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 as the betting favorite, the United States has been surpassed in the odds by England at Bovada.
- The United States finished second in Group E behind the Netherlands. Despite the disappointing effort in group play, the United States will advance to the knockout stage.
- USWNT was criticized for celebrating following a draw in the final group stage match versus Portugal.
We have a new favorite to win the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 heading into the knockout stage. Currently, England has the best odds to win the Women’s World Cup at +350 odds. They have overtaken the pre-season favorite Americans, but the updated Women’s World Cup 2023 odds at Bovada suggest that the knockout stage will be wide open.
The United States is advancing to face Sweden in the Round of 16. However, it wasn’t without running into issues in group play. As -400 favorites to win Group E, the USWNT finished second to the Netherlands. The women from the Netherlands had +250 odds to win Group E, though they played like the favorites.
USWNT relied on a 3-0 win in their World Cup opener to get to the knockout stage. There is a decent chance that they’d be going home early if they had a tougher opponent in that match. Following the 3-0 victory, the women went through the motions and had to settle for two draws.
The Netherlands forced a 1-1 draw, and then the US was unable to beat Portugal in a 0-0 draw.
They did not need a win to advance to the knockout stage. However, the killer instinct that we’ve seen from the USWNT in the past was not present. Bettors are sensing something is off because England is seeing more money to win the Women’s World Cup at online betting sites.
England Wins Group D Without Breaking A Sweat
The Lionesses had no issues navigating through Group D. They swept the group stage with wins over Denmark, China, and Haiti. The women from England scored eight goals and conceded only 1 goal during group play matches.
In their group stage finale, England throttled China for a 6-1 win. Lauren James had a big showing for the Lionesses, as she buried two goals and finished with three assists in the victory. The blowout wasn’t completely unexpected.
England beat China 6-1 to advance into the last 16 as group winners 🏴 pic.twitter.com/dAkZLy1cx3
— B/R Football (@brfootball) August 1, 2023
England had -180 odds to win, while China was a huge underdog to win the match at +550. It was a stress-free and easy win for bettors who backed England. The Lionesses were overwhelming favorites to win Group D.
With -4000 odds, England had an implied probability of 97.6% to win the group. They had the largest odds to win their group over any other club. In comparison, the Americans had an implied probability of 80% to win Group E.
Despite England’s success in the group stage, there is no denying that they had an easy schedule. There were clubs that had it much tougher than the Lionesses in the opening stage of the World Cup. Nevertheless, England can only play the teams that are in front of them. They’re also doing it without midfielder Kiera Walsh, who suffered a knee injury against Denmark.
The knockout stage should present an entirely new challenge for England. They will open the Round of 16 versus Nigeria on Monday, August 7.
USWNT Have Same Odds To Win Women’s World Cup As Spain
The United States is no longer favored to win the World Cup, but they didn’t drop off the board. They are tied with the Spaniards for the second-best odds to capture the Women’s World Cup in 2023. According to oddsmakers at Bovada, the USWNT and Spain have the same chance to win at +400.
Spain is another team that did not have a strong go of it in the group stage. They were heavily favored to win Group C, but were upset by Japan in a 4-0 loss on Monday. This came after an impressive 3-0 win over Costa Rica and 5-0 over Zambia.
The Spaniards did not look prepared for Japan in the least. The end result for taking the Japanese women lightly was a 4-0 loss and finishing second in Group C with 6 points.
Before the World Cup started, the US was favored to win it all with +250 odds. At the same time, Spain was +650 to win the World Cup. So, while Spain was not in good form versus Japan, their odds have improved since the event began.
Carli Lloyd Slams USWNT After Draw Versus Portugal
Former USWNT team captain and two-time FIFA Player of the Year Carli Lloyd pulled no punches when discussing the attitude of the squad following a 0-0 draw to the Portuguese. After the match concluded, the US women’s squad appeared to be in good spirits.
Fox's Carli Lloyd did not mince words about the USWNT appearing to celebrate their disappointing 0-0 draw with Portugal.
"To be dancing? To be smiling? The player of the match was that post." pic.twitter.com/QPHCIAoZ1e
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 1, 2023
Maybe they were in too good of a mood because Lloyd, who retired from soccer in 2021, was not impressed by the dancing and smiles. In additional comments to Fox Sports, Lloyd said that she felt there was a culture shift during her final two years with the USWNT.
“It just hurts me. It hurt me at the end of my career, those last couple of years to see the change and the shift in that culture and in that mentality. That hurt me to leave seeing what was coming”, said Lloyd.
Despite the criticism, with no clear betting favorite and a wide-open knocking stage ahead, the Americans are still very much alive in the race for the Women’s World Cup 2023 crown.
