Russia was one of the most surprising teams at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The host nation didn’t generate much buzz from a betting perspective prior to the tournament, but the team would go on to enjoy an impressive run that culminated in the greatest success of the Post-Soviet era.
Led by Artem Dzyuba and Denis Cheryshev, the opening game of the tournament and vital second-round victory over Spain will be long remembered fondly by the nation.
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Russia’s Standings
Russia will have the chance to improve upon their solid showing at the World Cup at UEFA Euro 2020. Russia officially clinched a spot in the Euros with a 5-0 thrashing of Cyprus during the qualifying stages over the weekend. Russia only needed a draw against Cyprus in order to qualify, but Stanislav Cherchesov’s side wound up crushing a 10-man Cyprus team.
While Russia was impressive at the World Cup in 2018, it’s safe to suggest the team won’t be among the betting favourites to win Euro 2020. Despite being one of the few sides to have already qualified, oddsmakers still have reigning World Cup champions France as the betting favourite to secure European glory next summer. Belgium, England, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and defending Euro champions Portugal are all among the sides with more favourable betting odds than Russia.
A lot will change between now and the beginning of the tournament in the summer of 2020. While Russia may have potentially profitable odds, the team that qualified this fall may look quite different by next summer. As of now, Russia is listed around 70-1 to win Euro 2020.
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Cheryshev opened the scoring with a strike in the ninth minute for the visitors before Magomed Ozdoev doubled the lead midway through the first 45 minutes - his second in two games after a screamer in the 4-0 victory at home to Scotland (as below). Cyprus was already up against it before Kostas Laifis received a straight red card for a dangerous challenge on Sergei Petrov, killing any hopes of a Cyprus comeback.
Artem Dzyuba made it three with his third goal in the last two games in the 79th minute. Aleksandr Golovin and Cheryshev’s second tally in the game’s final minutes effectively put the cherry on top.
Russia’s next contest will come against a heavily favoured Belgium side that FIFA currently ranks No. 1 in the world. Belgium earned a 2-0 victory over Kazakhstan in another Euro qualifier over the weekend. Should the Russians emerge victorious over Belgium in their upcoming match in mid-November, Russia will officially overtake Belgium at the top of Group I.
Belgium are currently atop the group with eight wins through eight qualifying matches, while Russia have managed a 7-0-1 record across their first eight outings. Cyprus are a distant third in the group after having amassed just 10 points through eight contests with a record of 3-1-4. Scotland are still alive for qualification in fourth place in the group, while Kazakhstan (seven points) and San Marino (zero points) are eliminated.
Qualifying, which began in March of this year, will conclude in March of next year. 24 teams in all will advance to the Euro 2020 final tournament, which will officially get underway on June 12, 2020. In addition to Russia, Belgium, Italy, Poland, and Spain have already secured a spot in the Finals. Russia, who won this competition in 1960, have qualified for the 12th time in their history.
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Euro 2020
In addition to those four teams that already secured qualification, a number of other sides look like good bets to do so in the near future. Portugal, the Netherlands, England, France, Spain, Croatia, Germany, Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Ireland, Hungary and Finland are currently in a position to qualify. Scotland, Switzerland, Iceland, Wales, Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Norway and Serbia are among the sides still vying for a place in the playoff rounds.
Unlike previous iterations of the European Championships, the 2020 edition will take place at a number of venues all over the European continent. The competition will be held across 12 different cities, including St. Petersburg in Russia. Azerbaijan, Denmark, England, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Ireland, Romania, Scotland and Spain will also host games at various stages of the competition.
The semi-finals and final for Euro 2020 will take place at Wembley Stadium in London. Portugal, who won Euro 2016 in France, will look to defend their first-ever European title.
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