With a quarterfinal date set against Wales on Friday, Belgium has rocketed up the Euro 2016 championship odds to +400 and trail only betting favorites Germany and France at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Belgium has stormed to life after a sloppy 2-0 opening loss to Italy that ultimately cost it first place in Group E, punching a ticket to the quarterfinals with a 4-0 statement win over Hungary.
That marked a third straight clean-sheet victory for Les Diables Rouges, who are pegged as -137 three-way betting chalk for Friday’s Belgium vs. Wales betting matchup at Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
Wales faces perhaps its toughest opponent of the tournament in Belgium, entering the contest as a +450 long shot on the three-way odds.
Led by Real Madrid star Gareth Bale, Wales has impressed during its first European championship appearance, posting wins over Russia and Slovakia in group stage action before eking out a 1-0 Round of 16 win over Northern Ireland on a Gareth McAuley own goal.
Despite their success, the Dragons continue to lag near the bottom of the odds, stalled at a long +2500 to win the tournament.
Germany was dominant in a 3-0 knockout win over Slovakia, cementing its position as +275 chalk to become the first nation to claim four Euro crowns. The road gets tougher for the reigning World Cup champions as they prepare to battle a resurgent Italy in a quarterfinal matchup on Saturday as +125 favorites.
Like Belgium, Die Mannschaft endured a somewhat mediocre group stage, struggling to a 0-0 draw with Poland before failing to dominate in a 1-0 win over Northern Ireland, but still came out atop Group C.
Conversely, the Azzurri have been impressive at this year’s tournament, emerging as a legitimate dark-horse threat following their Round of 16 victory over Spain, handing the two-time defending European champions a crushing 2-0 loss that has lifted them to a +500 bet on the Euro 2016 futures.
Italy has enjoyed considerable success against the Germans, going 4-2-1 in its past seven games, and has never lost to Die Mannschaft at a major international tournament.
Elsewhere, host nation France remains in the thick of the race on the Euro 2016 championship odds, pegged at +300 heading into Sunday’s quarterfinal clash with Iceland, who are listed as a +3300 long shot.
And Portugal has yet to earn a win inside 90 minutes at this year’s tournament, but sports solid +650 odds to win Euro 2016 ahead of Thursday’s quarterfinal meeting with Poland, who are attracting interest as a +1800 futures wager.
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
