Here is our
ranking list of the
best bookmakers for the World Cup 2010:
With the
2010 FIFA World Cup right around the corner, there are some
important dates to put in your calendar. Maybe you will need to book some time off work in advance, so that you can
enjoy watching your nation at
the World Cup. Perhaps you are planning a trip to one of the large screen FIFA Fan Fest gatherings which they are putting on, or whether you just want to make sure that you
get your bets in on time, knowing when things are happening is paramount. The
opening match of the 2010 World Cup starts on
June 11 when
Mexico plays hosts South Africa, in what promises to be a very special atmosphere.
Just one day later,
Fabio Capello’s England will
kick off their quest for
World Cup glory against David Beckham’s adopted country, the
USA, in Rustenburg.
England’s second match sees them head to Cape Town to
take on Algeria, before rounding off their group matches
on June 23rd against fellow Europeans
Slovenia in Nelson Mandel Bay/Port Elizabeth. England have never played Slovenia or Algeria in the World Cup, but they famously lost 1-0 against the USA in 1950, in what remains as one of the biggest ever World Cup upsets.
The first round throws up some very interesting dates, especially in Group G, where the opening match between the Ivory Coast v Portugal on June 15th, could essentially be the deciding game as to who comes runner-up to Brazil, if things go according to plan.
Brazil are one of the favourites to lift the trophy, but do have one of the tougher opening groups to navigate. They start their Group of Death matches against the minnows Korea DPR.
If you are looking forward to seeing
outright favourites Spain in action, then their first game is against Switzerland on June 16th. They have played twice before in the World Cup, Spain winning both encounters. Defending champions
Italy take on one of the potential dark horses from South America, Paraguay. The two sides have met once before in World Cup history, Italy winning 2-0 in 1950.
The one game which all
32 participants in the 2010 World Cup are dreaming of playing in, is game 64 of the tournament, the
World Cup Final. The big event takes place in Johannesburg’s Soccer City on
July 11th, with the two
semi finals being held over
July 6th and 7th. There are potentially big clashes in the first
knockout stage, if results go a certain way. Brazil could play Spain, in what many would expect to be the final. England could play Germany. World Cup holders Italy could play the Netherlands in the last sixteen. Those scenario’s could happen if one of the seeded teams end up in second place, which means they would play a group winner, more likely than not, a seeded team.
Every game is vital in the
world cup and past results will be on the mind of players and management alike, as they go into the new matches. The results that stick out the most are the notorious upsets where the underdogs have had their day. Those are the World Cup results that the modern day players daren’t dream of letting happen again. Remember Argentina 0, Cameroon 1 in 1990? Remember Senegal beating France 1-0 in 2002? How about Northern Ireland’s 1-0 win over Spain in 1982? Or South Korea’s 2-1 victory over Italy in 2002? There is
always the potential for an upset, and the big teams which can avoid the potential banana skins, will show the qualities needed to lift the trophy.
World Cup 2010 - Fixtures & Results
World Cup Group Stage
Date / Time (UK) |
Group |
Match |
Result |
11 Jun / 15:00 |
A |
South Africa - Mexico |
1-1 |
11 Jun / 19:30 |
A |
Uruguay - France |
0-0 |
12 Jun / 12:30 |
B |
South Korea - Greece |
2-0 |
12 Jun / 15:00 |
B |
Argentina - Nigeria |
1-0 |
12 Jun / 19:30 |
C |
England - USA |
1-1 |
13 Jun / 12:30 |
C |
Algeria - Slovenia |
0-1 |
13 Jun / 15:00 |
D |
Serbia - Ghana |
0-1 |
13 Jun / 19:30 |
D |
Germany - Australia |
4-0 |
14 Jun / 12:30 |
E |
Holland - Denmark |
2-0 |
14 Jun / 15:00 |
E |
Japan - Cameroon |
1-0 |
14 Jun / 19:30 |
F |
Italy - Paraguay |
1-1 |
15 Jun / 12:30 |
F |
New Zealand - Slovakia |
1-1 |
15 Jun / 15:00 |
G |
Ivory Coast - Portugal |
0-0 |
15 Jun / 19:30 |
G |
Brazil - North Korea |
2-1 |
16 Jun / 12:30 |
H |
Honduras - Chile |
0-1 |
16 Jun / 15:00 |
H |
Spain - Switzerland |
0-1 |
16 Jun / 19:30 |
A |
South Africa - Uruguay |
0-3 |
17 Jun / 12:30 |
B |
Argentina - South Korea |
4-1 |
17 Jun / 15:00 |
B |
Greece - Nigeria |
2-1 |
17 Jun / 19:30 |
A |
France - Mexico |
0-2 |
18 Jun / 12:30 |
D |
Germany - Serbia |
0-1 |
18 Jun / 15:00 |
C |
Slovenia - USA |
2-2 |
18 Jun / 19:30 |
C |
England - Algeria |
0-0 |
19 Jun / 12:30 |
E |
Holland - Japan |
1-0 |
19 Jun / 15:00 |
D |
Ghana - Australia |
1-1 |
19 Jun / 19:30 |
E |
Cameroon - Denmark |
1-2 |
20 Jun / 12:30 |
F |
Slovakia - Paraguay |
0-2 |
20 Jun / 15:00 |
F |
Italy - New Zealand |
1-1 |
20 Jun / 19:30 |
G |
Brazil - Ivory Coast |
3-1 |
21 Jun / 12:30 |
G |
Portugal - North Korea |
7-0 |
21 Jun / 15:00 |
H |
Chile - Switzerland |
1-0 |
21 Jun / 19:30 |
H |
Spain - Honduras |
2-0 |
22 Jun / 15:00 |
A |
Mexico - Uruguay |
0-1 |
22 Jun / 15:00 |
A |
France - South Africa |
1-2 |
22 Jun / 19:30 |
B |
Nigeria - South Korea |
2-2 |
22 Jun / 19:30 |
B |
Greece - Argentina |
0-2 |
23 Jun / 15:00 |
C |
Slovenia - England |
0-1 |
23 Jun / 15:00 |
C |
USA - Algeria |
1-0 |
23 Jun / 19:30 |
D |
Ghana - Germany |
0-1 |
23 Jun / 19:30 |
D |
Australia - Serbia |
2-1 |
24 Jun / 15:00 |
F |
Slovakia - Italy |
3-2 |
24 Jun / 15:00 |
F |
Paraguay - New Zealand |
0-0 |
24 Jun / 19:30 |
E |
Denmark - Japan |
1-3 |
24 Jun / 19:30 |
E |
Cameroon - Holland |
1-2 |
25 Jun / 15:00 |
G |
North Korea - Ivory Coast |
0-3 |
25 Jun / 15:00 |
G |
Portugal - Brazil |
0-0 |
25 Jun / 19:30 |
H |
Switzerland - Honduras |
0-0 |
25 Jun / 19:30 |
H |
Chile - Spain |
1-2 |
World Cup Round of the last 16
Date / Time (UK) |
Match |
Result |
26 Jun / 15:00 |
Uruguay - South Korea (1) |
2-1 |
26 Jun / 19:30 |
USA - Ghana (3) |
1-2 AET |
27 Jun / 15:00 |
Germany - England (4) |
4-1 |
27 Jun / 19:30 |
Argentina - Mexico (2) |
3-1 |
28 Jun / 15:00 |
Holland - Slovakia (5) |
2-1 |
28 Jun / 19:30 |
Brazil - Chile (7) |
3-0 |
29 Jun / 15:00 |
Paraguay - Japan (6) |
5-3 PEN |
29 Jun / 19:30 |
Spain - Portugal (8) |
1-0 |
World Cup Quarter Finals
Date / Time (UK) |
Match |
Result |
2 Jul / 15:00 |
Holland - Brazil (C) |
2-1 |
2 Jul / 19:30 |
Uruguay - Ghana (A) |
5-3 PEN |
3 Jul / 15:00 |
Argentina - Germany (B) |
0-4 |
3 Jul / 19:30 |
Paraguay - Spain (D) |
0-1 |
World Cup Semi Finals
Date / Time (UK) |
Match |
Result |
6 Jul / 19:30 |
Uruguay - Holland (I) |
2-3 |
7 Jul / 19:30 |
Germany - Spain (II) |
0-1 |
Third Place Playoff
Date / Time (UK) |
Match |
Result |
10 Jul / 19:30 |
Uruguay - Germany |
2-3 |
World Cup Final
Date / Time (UK) |
Match |
Result |
11 Jul / 19:30 |
Holland - Spain |
0-1 AET |
