Online Gambling - Sportsbooks

Staff Writer
June 30, 2009

This Friday will herald the first game of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and the United States – fresh of their recent accomplishments in South Africa – are firm favorites. Sportsbook.com has posted odds.

The tournament, which will be hosted in the United States, will be contested from July 3 to 26 between 12 teams across the CONCACAF Confederation. Teams from the Caribbean and Central American zones, including Grenada and Nicaragua in their first Gold Cup appearances, will join North American qualifiers USA, Mexico, and Canada.

The United States will have an excellent home advantage, especially considering that this will be the tenth consecutive time they have hosted the event. Even though they will be fighting for a third successive Gold Cup, USA will have some stiff competition, especially from Mexico who will still be reeling from their controversial loss in the 2007 Gold Cup final to the US.

The tournament will kick off on Friday with the opening match between Canada and Jamaica. Though their success at global level has been limited (they have only qualified for one World Cup), Canada do possess the skill necessary to win a tournament – as was seen in 2000 when they won their second Gold Cup. Be that as it may, in the last two meetings between Canada and Jamaica it has been the Jamaicans that have looked the more dominant squad – winning 3-0 in November and drawing 1-1 away from home in August.

The most anticipated matchup of the group stage, however, will be played on July 8 between Honduras and the United States. Both teams are well on their way to qualifying for the 2010 World Cup and are sporting arguably their best squads in some time. The United States performed above and beyond expectations to finish a worthy runner-up at the recent Confederations Cup, while Honduras is sitting on a six-game undefeated streak. The best contests may come from the experienced English Premier League players Wilson Palacios and Maynor Figueroa. They will have a wealth of knowledge to bring to their Honduras outfit, whereas the United States have rested the majority of their Confederations Cup squad and replaced them with young up-and-comers. That could be a problem for the USA as only seven of their players have scored for their country, and only six have played more than ten internationals.

Whatever the outcome of the group stages we can be certain that we will see some entertaining football. Every country will be eager to do well in the tournament, none more than those that have already failed to qualify for South Africa 2010. If Gold Cup history has taught us anything, it is that every team is capable of reaching the final, as we saw with Panama in 2005.

Sportsbook.com has already posted odds on the first matches, but be sure to check out BetUS later this week for all the latest picks.

First Round Matches

Canada: +150
Draw: +220
Jamaica: +150

Costa Rica: -181
Draw: +250
El Salvador: +450

Honduras: -500
Draw: +450
Haiti: +1100

Grenada: +1400
Draw: +700
USA: -1000

Panama: -181
Draw: +250
Guadeloupe: +450

Nicaragua: +1500
Draw: +750
Mexico: -2000

To Win Gold Cup

Canada: +3300
Costa Rica: +650
El Salvador: +4000
Grenada: +50000
Guadeloupe: +5000
Haiti: +25000
Honduras: +1400
Jamaica: +2500
Mexico: +200
Nicaragua: +50000
Panama: +2500
USA: -105