Article: Will Messi Finally Win an Elusive FIFA World Cup This Winter in Qatar?
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By Jonathan Lewis| 10th Nov 2022
Argentinian international football star Lionel Messi finally win an elusive World Cup this year in Qatar? Find out more right here.
Lionel Messi first played in the World Cup finals back in 2006. Since then, he has competed in three other consecutive World Cups – 2010, 2014, and 2018. The closest Messi has ever come to winning a World Cup was in Brazil in 2014. They got to the final and lost 1-0 to Germany thanks to a goal from Mario Götze in the 113th minute.
The question being asked here is, will Messi finally win a World Cup this winter in Qatar? The Argentinian men’s side is currently looking in top form, and so too is Messi in his recent performances at club level for French Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), so there’s a good chance they could go all the way.
How likely is it that Argentina will win the upcoming 2022 World Cup in Qatar?
To really get a better understanding of just how far Argentina might progress in the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, the best thing to do would be to trawl through some of the major sports betting websites to find out the current odds being offered to bettors. For example, you can now find the latest World Cup 2022 odds at Unibet, and it’s looking good for Argentina. Argentina currently stands as the joint-second odds-on favourites to win the World Cup outright along with France, who also have the same odds.
For example, both France and Argentina are currently priced at 650 in American/Moneyline odds to win the tournament outright. UK fractional odds work out to 13/2, and in European decimal odds, it equates to 7.50. The only team that looks more likely to win the World Cup this year is Brazil, who are currently priced at 400 (which is 4/1, or 5.00).
How likely is it that Messi will be the top goalscorer at the World Cup?
You may also be surprised to learn that Messi is NOT the favourite to score the most goals throughout the tournament. He is currently the third odds-on favourite to be the top goalscorer behind France’s Kylian Mbappé and England’s Harry Kane. If you’re looking for the actual odds, you will see that Messi is currently priced at 1,100 (11/1, or 12.00), Kylian Mbappé is priced at 900 (9/1, or 10.00), and the odds-on favourite to score the most goals, Harry Kane, is currently priced at 800 (8/1, or 9.00).
Does Argentina have an easy group?
Argentina are in Group C, along with Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and Poland, so you could say that they have a relatively easy group. However, no group is ‘easy.’ If you look at the official FIFA world rankings, you will see that Argentina are currently the third-best football team in the world behind Belgium (#2) and Brazil (#1). In comparison, Saudi Arabia is currently ranked at 51. Mexico is currently ranked at number 13, and Poland is ranked at number 26.
Who will Argentina play first?
In their opening game of the World Cup at the Lusail Stadium on November 22nd, Argentina play Saudi Arabia at 10:00 GMT. Their next game is against Mexico on November 26th, also at the same stadium, and then on November 30th at 19:00, they play Mexico at Stadium 974.
Can Argentina really win?
Yes. There’s a very good chance that Argentina can win the Qatar World Cup, and if they do win, it means that they will have won the World Cup on three separate occasions. They first won the World Cup in 1978 when they were the host nation, and then again in 1986 when Mexico were the hosts. Lionel Messi is often regarded by many as being the greatest footballer that ever played the game, and he has won just about every major trophy there is to win – apart from the World Cup, that is. Therefore, winning the world would be the perfect end to a glittering career, as it looks highly unlikely he will play at the FIFA 2026 World Cup.
Jonathan Lewis is an MFF sports writer
