England’s Rugby World Cup campaign gets underway very soon and with their form currently showing no particular sign of improvement.

That means it comes as little surprise that England are currently seen as an outside bet to win the Rugby World Cup (RWC) in the eyes of the best betting sites.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of England winning the RWC for the first and only time to date – a Jonny Wilkinson drop-goal helping them to overcome an Australian side coached by Eddie Jones in a gruelling affair that went to extra-time.

Four years later, the English were back in the World Cup final, but on this occasion South Africa had too much in the tank for their northern hemisphere counterparts.

The aforementioned Jones was aiding Springboks head coach Jake White in a consultancy role and come the 2019 finals in Japan, the outspoken Aussie was now at the helm of the English.

The Tasmanian once again weaved his magic as his charges denied New Zealand in their quest to secure the Webb Ellis Cup for a third consecutive time.

That famous semi-final triumph saw England returning to a World Cup decider, but despite their impressive last-four scalp, it was another South African success story at the expense of the English.

Run Of Form Led To English Coaching Change 

While they initially continued to prosper under Jones – they won the third Six Nations Championship of his tenure and the once-off Autumn Nations Cup in the winter of 2020 – the wheels ultimately started to come off and he was relieved of his coaching duties late last year.

His former assistant coach Steve Borthwick was called upon to assume the reins and while he had established himself as a head coach by guiding Leicester Tigers to a Gallagher Premiership title in 2021/22, it has been a difficult transition back to international rugby for the ex-Saracens lock.

In addition to winning just two games in this spring’s Six Nations – and suffering a comprehensive reversal to France – England have lost three of the four warm-up games that they have played in advance of the World Cup.

There seems to be uncertainty about the way the side are playing at the moment, with many believing the style of play being deployed by Borthwick doesn’t necessarily suit the players that are at his disposal.

England Are Outsiders For World Cup Success

He certainly was left with a tough task on his hands given how the side had deteriorated in the final months of Jones’ spell as head coach and also the problems that have surrounded the club scene in England.

Nevertheless, a record of just three wins from nine games in the calendar year to date means the 2003 champions are currently sixth in the pecking order for World Cup glory.

As it stands, some of the best betting sites for rugby union are currently offering odds of 12/1 on England winning the tournament for just the second time in their history.

This is one of the lowest values to be found on an English triumph at the World Cup and you’ll find Spreadex are pushing it as far out as 16/1.

England Could Still Have A Strong World Cup Campaign

Although there is very little current evidence that points towards England being likely winners of the World Cup, it should be noted that the class of 2007 making it to the tournament final was also somewhat out of the blue.

After beginning their campaign with a 28-10 win over the United States, England were on the receiving end of a 36-0 humbling at the expense of South Africa.

Victories did follow over Samoa and Tonga, but not a huge amount was expected of them heading into the knockout rounds.

Yet they dug deep to defeat Australia and France before eventually losing to South Africa in the final, albeit on a more respectable scoreline of 15-6.

A member of the squad back then – along with Andy Farrell and Mike Catt (who are the Irish head coach and attack coach for this year’s tournament respectively) – Borthwick will undoubtedly be drilling into them how their fortune can suddenly turn around in the next few weeks.

The fact that the four most-favoured teams in the 2023 Rugby World Cup betting odds (New Zealand, France, South Africa and Ireland) are all on the other side of the draw also opens up the possibility of a team putting a run together and having an encouraging World Cup.

However, England can’t afford to look beyond the pool stages in their current form, particularly with Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola serving suspensions at the moment.

While Chile will be playing in their first World Cup and are only ranked 22nd in the world rankings, Argentina, Japan and Samoa are all capable of pulling off big results against the English.

Clash With Argentines Very Hard To Call On Paper

n the case of Argentina, it wouldn’t even be that much of a shock to see them getting past England as they are above both Wales and Scotland when it comes to the betting for a potential World Cup winner.

When it comes to their opening round clash at Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Saturday week, there is very little to separate England and Argentina.

Remarkably, Ladbrokes have both England and Argentina at 10/11 to win the game.

Meanwhile, the odds on a draw in the game are 20/1, but it is of course much more difficult to guess beforehand if a rugby fixture will end in a stalemate.

England fell to a chastening 33-13 defeat at the hands of an Australian team in their home-based World Cup in 2015.

Michael Cheika was head coach of the Wallabies for that game and with the former Leinster supremo in the same role with Argentina for the 2023 edition of the World Cup, he will fancy his chances of a similar result at the weekend.