The next Rugby World Cup is about to kick off and there are plenty of opportunities to put down some sports bets throughout the tournament. The 2023 edition of this top rugby event is happening in France, with the opening match taking place on September 8. The final is set for October 28.
As the 20 teams compete for the coveted William Webb-Ellis trophy, you can compete to win some great bets. It’s all about understanding the sport, the tournament, and the players.
The Pool Stages
The first matches of the World Cup are played in a group stage. You have four pools made up of five teams each. Overall favorites to win, New Zealand, are in Pool A along with the tournament hosts and second favorite to win, France. Third favorite are the current title holders, South Africa, and they head up Pool B.
Each team plays the other teams within their pool, gaining points for wins and draws, as well as bonus points. Those can be earned by scoring four or more tries in a match, or by coming within 7 points of the winning team’s score.
The Finals
Then come the playoffs – quarter finals, semifinals, the bronze final, and the main final. The top two teams from each group make it through to this round, with the winner of the group playing the runner up from another group. This year, it will be the winner of Pool A versus the runner-up of Pool B, and vice versa. Pools C and D will match up in the same way.
The quarter final winners then advance to the semifinals, and those winners advance to the final. The losers of the semifinals play off in the bronze final to see who comes third and fourth overall.
Your Rugby Betting Options
The obvious betting options for the tournament are to pick the overall winners, or the group stage winners. If you want to, you could bet on the outcome of each match. You could also pick who will make the semifinals or the finals too.
In rugby league betting, in addition to picking winners, you can bet on how much a team will win by. This is much harder to predict but can result in a good win if you get it right because of the difficulty involved in the bet.
There are many other rugby betting options in the mix during a World Cup. You could pick the team to earn the most bonus points in the group stages. You could select your player of a specific match or of the tournament as a whole. Another option is to pick the player who you believe is going to score the most points or the most tries throughout the tournament.
In the build up to the tournament, be sure to check out the odds that bookmakers are offering and the different categories for you to place your sports bets. There are many ways to get involved and win big.