Rugby World Cup Odds: What Are The Odds On England Winning The Rugby World Cup?
They made it four wins from four at Stade Pierre-Mauroy last Saturday but, as far as the best betting sites are concerned, England are still behind the pack leaders in the race for Rugby World Cup success.
Like their near neighbours Wales, there was great uncertainty surrounding Steve Borthwick’s side in advance of this finals tournament in France.
After replacing Eddie Jones at the tail end of 2022, former Leicester Tigers head coach Borthwick was left with the difficult task of preparing his new charges for a Six Nations Championship in the spring of this year.
Two wins from five games made it a rather underwhelming start to life in the English hot seat for the ex-second row and just one win from four warm-up games raised further concerns about their short-term prospects.
A defeat to Fiji at Twickenham Stadium on August 26 was seen as a new low for English rugby, but that 30-22 reversal is now being viewed very differently just a few weeks later.
England And Fiji Set For Renewal Of Acquaintances This Weekend
Following qualification from their respective pools, England are now set to face the Fijians in the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup at Stade de Marseille on Sunday (kick-off 4pm UK time/5pm local time).
Whereas the Pacific Islanders bagged runners-up spot in Pool C after claiming a losing bonus point against Portugal on Sunday in Toulouse, an unbeaten march helped the English to finish at the summit of Pool D with 18 points to their name.
While they had just one point to spare over Samoa on the weekend in Lille, England were already guaranteed top place.
The pool’s second-best team Argentina and Japan were seen as potential banana skins for them, but the 2003 champions have come together in France and will feel confident about making it through to the last-four of the RWC.
England Seen As Strong Favourites To Beat Fijians
With 12 different betting apps – 888sport, Bet UK and Parimatch being amongst them – England are rated as 3/10 favourites to defeat Fiji and reach a World Cup semi-final for the sixth time.
Bet365 and Betway are just two of 10 bookmakers who rate the English as a 1/3prospect for this last-eight duel, which offers a strong indication of how much the Six Nations outfit are fancied this weekend.
The longest odds you can get on Fiji repeating their recent warm-up triumph over England is 11/4. This can be found with UK betting sites such as William Hill, BetVictor, BoyleSports and Parimatch.
England Only Seen As Being Amongst Chasing Pack For World Cup Glory
Yet despite being the only northern hemisphere nation to have gotten their hands on the Webb Ellis Cup, England are currently only fifth favourites to win the World Cup for a second time.
They are seen as the strongest side in the chasing pack, but Ireland, France, South Africa and New Zealand have been viewed as the fourth best teams in the tournament since it began at the start of last month – if not before it as well.
The most common odds to be found on the best betting sites for rugby union England to secure RWC top honours in advance of their final pool game against Samoa was 10/1.
This is no longer the case, however, as no fewer than 13 betting apps now see them as an 11/1 possibility for World Cup success.
This includes bookmakers like Bet365, William Hill, 888sport, Bet UK and Parimatch. Coral and SpreadEx have gone slightly longer at 12/1.
Betway are out on their own with the longest odds of 14/1 and even though most betting sites believe their prospects are greater than that, it is clear that England are expected to come up short at this year’s World Cup.
Should they – as expected – make it into the penultimate round of the tournament, their opponents would be the winners of the clash between France and South Africa on the same day in Saint-Denis.
Given their form was far more impressive in the months leading up to the World Cup, England (or Fiji for that matter) will be seen as clear underdogs in the battle for a tournament showpiece spot on October 28.
England Are Short Odds For A Last-Four Spot
Still, of the eight teams left in the tournament, England have been given the shortest odds of reaching the semi-final stage. SpreadEx are offering 1/4 on Borthwick’s side progressing to the final-four, while Betway (4/11) are also convinced they will make it past the quarter-finals.
Certainly a lot of experience remains within the England ranks, especially in the form of international centurions like Owen Farrell, Ben Youngs, Courtney Lawes and Dan Cole. Back in 2007, Borthwick was a player in an English set-up that defied the odds to make it all the way to the final.
He was also on board as an assistant coach when England reached the same stage in 2019 – when he experienced losing to South Africa for the second time in a World Cup decider – and it would be foolish to rule out the prospect that the current group are getting things together at just the right time.