For just the second time, the United States, along with Canada and Mexico, will play host to the World Cup. The United States last hosted the event in 1994. Since placing third at the 1930 World Cup, the closes the Americans have ever come to reaching the finals was in 2002 when they made it to the quarterfinals and finished eighth overall. They have reached the Round of 16 the last three times they have qualified for the World Cup, pacing 14th in 2022.
Spain and France are the favorites, per FanDuel Sportsbook, at +450 and +500, respectively. Other favorites include England (+650), which makes European squads the three biggest favorites for FIFA World Cup futures bets. Five-time champion Brazil are priced at +850, with Lionel Messi and Argentina at +1000 to become the first repeat champions since Brazil in 1962. The USMNT, who get underway against Paraguay at 9 p.m. ET on Friday, are +5500 in the futures odds to win it all.
Before you lock in your 2026 World Cup USMNT futures bets, you need to see what SportsLine's soccer insider Jon "Buckets" Eimer has to say.
Eimer is a high-volume bettor who has vast knowledge of leagues and players across the globe. Since joining SportsLine, he has covered the English Premier League, Champions League, Serie A, the FA Cup, and much more. He's been red-hot on his soccer betting picks in 2026, posting a 31-13-2 record and returning over $1,200 of profit on his Champions League picks. Anyone wanting to follow his World Cup betting advice at sportsbooks and on betting apps could see big returns.
One thing we can give away: Eimer is backing the USMNT to Reach the Round of 16 (-115, 1 unit) as the Americans have reached the Round of 16 in three of the last four World Cups. "While I am well known for talking poorly about the USA squad, I will say that even with all the problems we have going into this World Cup, we do have a squad that I truly believe is good enough to advance at least to the round of 16," Eimer said. "Let's say I'm right about USA finishing second - that means they would play the second-place finisher of Group G in the round of 32. That is most likely going to be Egypt.
"Egypt is a solid squad, but I believe that USMNT with the home-field motivation and advantage, will be able to take down a formidable side, punching their ticket to the round of 16. Also, if I'm wrong and USA wins the group, their round of 32 opponent will be the third place finisher from group A, E, H, I or J, all which I see USA being able to beat."
Eimer has locked in his best USA 2026 World Cup best bet, as part of three top futures plays. He's also high on a top goal scorer priced at nearly +2000 to "find goals outside of the box" that could shock the competition. You NEED to see who Eimer is backing before locking in your 2026 World Cup futures picks!
So how will the USMNT do at the 2026 World Cup, and which HUGE longshot goal scorer could surprise? ... Join SportsLine now to see who you can back during the World Cup 2026, and see which longshot goal scorer helps power the USMNT, all from the proven soccer insider profitable in multiple areas!
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Written by Daniel Kohn
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