World Cup Best Bets – July 7 – Round of 16

Portugal have struggled to consistently break down the opposition at the World Cup. Despite winning two of their last three, they have drawn two at the competition in 2026. Their 2-1 win over Croatia in the last round came via a 94th minute winner, with Portugal just about accounting for their veteran opponents. Heading into this one, it feels like something of a watershed moment for Portugal. The odds suggest they will not win this one, and I agree with them. Portugal have found working a way through the opposition tough, while their only game against a team of note saw them draw with Colombia in a match they were dominated in. 

Spain arrive for this one on the back of a deserved 3-0 win over Austria in the Round of 32. Despite starting their campaign with a 0-0 draw against Cape Verde, Spain have looked solid, beating Saudi Arabia 4-0 before downing Uruguay 1-0. Their 3-0 win over Austria saw them dominate the ball and chances as they played Austria off the park. While this will not likely be an easy win for Spain, they should have too much quality for a Portuguese side that have lacked consistent firepower so far. 

The USA have enjoyed an excellent campaign so far, with three wins and a loss to Türkiye seeing them keep their dreams of winning the World Cup alive. Interestingly, the USA are yet to play a side of any real quality. Their wins over Paraguay and Australia came against a pair of teams they were expected to beat, while they were beaten by Türkiye in their final group game. Their 2-0 win over Bosnia came with the home side as the big favourites, but they will not likely find a team that will let them run the show when they take on Belgium.

Belgium are lucky to still be a part of the 2026 World Cup after their late-show forced extra-time against Senegal before they struck in the 125th minute to win the game 3-2. After going 2-0 down after 51 minutes, Belgium looked dead and buried. However, a combination of Senegal switching off and not playing along with Belgium finding some rhythm saw them force their way back into the contest. In this one, I do not expect Belgium to be anywhere near as bad. They will know how lucky they are to still be in the World Cup, and I predict that they will come good on being given another chance by eliminating the USA.