In Canada there is a growing consensus that the Canadian women are a legitimate darkhorse in the World Cup. Most assume that they will advance to the knock-out stage and a semi-final berth seems to be the result many would be satisfied with.
Outside of these borders, however, the Canucks aren’t as fancied. Although most non-Canadian previews suggest that Canada is “improved” none suggest that they are legitimate contenders. Only one non-American preview I came across in my research had Canada advancing to the semis – Lauren Barker in the All White Kit/ Equalizer preview. Like, CSN they predicted a fourth place finish for the Canucks. There was an even split between those that saw Canada losing in the quarters versus those that saw France advance at their expense in the rest of the non-Canadian previews I came across.
The betting houses are even more pessimistic. Although it’s important to realize that odds are based on action and a lot of action on the WWC is from people with limited knowledge of women’s football (and who base their perceptions on their knowledge of men’s football) the odds do tell a story of where people outside of Canada see this team.
Here are the current (11 a.m. Friday) odds at one British betting house.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]To win the World Cup (odds are multipliers – so, if you were to bet $10 on Germany to win the World Cup at their current odds of 2.04 you would get a return of $10 X $2.04, or $20.40)
1- Germany – 2.04
2- Brazil – 6
3 - USA – 6.6
4 - Sweden – 16.5
5 - England – 30
5 - France – 30
7 - Japan – 36
8 - Norway – 38
9 - Canada – 42
10 - North Korea – 55
11 - Australia – 160
12 - Mexico – 300
13 - Colombia – 500
14 - New Zealand – 540
14 - Nigeria – 540
14 - Equatorial Guinea – 540
For those that are interested in betting on group winners you’d get these odds:
Group A
1 - Germany – 1.1
2 - France – 9.6
3 - Canada – 15
4 - Nigeria – 29
Group B
1 - Japan – 1.97
2 - England – 2.46
3 - Mexico – 9
4 - New Zealand – 12
Group C
1 - USA – 1.67
2 - Sweden – 3
3 - Colombia – 26
4 - North Korea – 7.2
Group D
1 - Brazil – 1.43
2 - Norway – 3.15
3 - Australia – 9.2
4 - Equatorial Guinea – 42
If you just want to bet on the Canucks for Sunday you can get odds of 26 for a win over Germany or 10 for a draw.