Written by Thomas | Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

As the world gets ready to embrace the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the sportsbooks have released the opening odds for the matches during the first round.

The first two matches of the tournament include the hosts South Africa and Mexico, as well as France and Uruguay.  These matches will be played on Friday June 11th. The host team South Africa has been discussed as a potential champion, as well as Mexico – being a perenially power. This is a tough one to choose, and the oddsmakers agree. They have placed similiar odds for both teams. Initially, the host team South Africa was listed at +170, while Mexico was +155. At some sportsbooks, the odds have changed, but very small. The other match for opening day includes France and Uruguay. The French are the favorites here, and you can grab them at -105, while Uruguay is listed at +285.

Day two includes Argentina and Nigeria, along with Greece and the Korea Republic. Argentina seems to have a great chance at moving on in pool play, and are big favorites over Nigeria. You can grab them at -250, while Nigeria gets +700 odds. Greece and Korea Republic is another match where oddsmakers were unable to get a great grasp on. Greece is listed at +140 and the Korea Rebulic is +190.

The United States will play on day two as well, as the final match of the day. Many publications have the Americans first round opponent as one of the best in the world. The English team is listed as major favorites (-225), while the underdog Americans are +525. The odds for the remainder of the first group of games are listed, and will be discussed later.

If future bets are what you are seeking, the World Cup is full of them. Probably the most popular future bet when its comes to the World Cup is, who will win the whole thing? Spain and Brazil have the best odds, with the Spainiards listed at +400, and Brazil at +450. Argentina is third, England fourth and Germany fifth. Germany at +1200, has the fifth best odds, but listed at more than +1000. The United States comes in 15th, listed at +7000, while the hosts South Africa is +15,000 – the highest of any host country. The biggest long shot to win the 2010 World Cup is New Zealand, at 150,000 to 1.

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