We’ve officially reached the point where every team in EURO 2024 has played its opening match in the tournament, with the first batch of second laps kicking off on Wednesday afternoon. As we await those results, let’s take a look at what we can expect in Thursday’s action, including some heavy hitters in Groups B and C.
3:00 p.m. ET Headliner: Spain vs. Italy
| Spain Win | +118 | Italy Win | +290 | Draw | +220 |
| Over 2.5 Goals | +118 | Under 2.5 Goals | -143 | Broadcast | TSN |
In what could arguably be the highest-profile matchup of the tournament so far, the fate of Group B’s leaderboard will likely be decided by this game. First-round wins from both nations and a 2-2 draw between Albania and Croatia to kick off the action on Wednesday mean that any result featuring points in this match would go a very long way in securing advancement to the knockout stages.
Spain had a bittersweet result against Croatia to kick off their tournament, cruising to a 3-0 victory while finally losing grip of one of the most impressive streaks in sports. Prior to Saturday, the nation had led their matches in possession for 136 consecutive games, not falling under the 50% mark since the EURO 2008 final against Germany. Over time, the Tiki-Taka that served them so well has been phased out, with more focus on speed and direct play this time around. It played to their advantage because while they held just 46% of the ball, they exploded for three first-half goals, plenty enough to sit back on in the second half.
The Italians also proved victorious on Saturday, though they looked head for disaster at first blush. A questionable throw in back towards goal was turned into a Nedim Bajrami strike to put Albina up 1-0 just 23 seconds in, the fastest opening goal in the history of the tournament. Italy could’ve folded or taken the error as a wake-up call, and they ultimately chose the latter, holding 69% of the ball over the game, throwing 17 shots toward the goal, and, most importantly, pulling back ahead within 15 minutes of their big mistake. While the end of the game had some tense moments, they held on for the 2-1 result.
Spain comes in as the favourites, as they entered the tournament projected to win the group and were a bit more convincing in victory in their opener. But these two nations have always had great matches against each other, and any result would come as little surprise. Italy has only lost to Spain once in 10 games at major tournaments, though that single defeat was arguably the most important match, coming in the EURO 2012 final.
Game Bets To Consider
- Take Alvaro Morata to score in this one, with an anytime price of +150. Morata is a key component of the Spanish offence, factored in against Croatia, and is familiar with the Italian game from his previous time playing with Juventus.
- I’d look at Both Teams To Score for this one. A barn-burner is unlikely, but both will get their looks, and both know the importance of these points and will be playing for them. “Yes” is -115 on Betano.
Bet on Spain vs. Italy
ESP +118
ITA +290
Other EURO 2024 Games On June 20
Slovenia vs. Serbia, 9:00 a.m. ET
While the battle for the top of Group B headlines the matchday, Thursday morning will be kicked off by the second round of Group C action. Slovenia comes in fresh off a 1-1 draw against Denmark, while Serbia is desperate for points following a loss to England.
Both could really use the win to secure a chance at the second seed, but Serbia’s priority is to earn three points. To their credit, they played England to a much closer game than most expected, and as such, they are favoured to win this match.
Game Bet To Consider: Betano has a boosted prop for the first goal scorer of the game, which gives you an option on either side. If either Benjamin Sesko of Slovenia or Aleksandar Mitrovic of Serbia is the first to strike, you convert at +290, up from +260. Each is their nation’s anytime favourite to score independently, so you’re drawing good names here.
Denmark vs. England, 12:00 p.m. ET
Hopes remain high for the Three Lions, though the degree to which they’re favoured has somewhat slipped after their first game. Sure, Jude Bellingham delivered on his hype and gave England the lone goal they needed to achieve victory over Serbia, but what was expected to be a one-sided affair was a little too close for comfort, with Serbia being right with them in terms of shots and possession throughout. England will be hoping to keep up their five-game streak of clean sheets in the Euro group stages, along with their run of positive results against the Danes – mostly recently tested in the EURO 2020 semi-finals, where Denmark took the initial lead, but England rallied back to win 2-1 in extra time.
Game Bet To Consider: With Jude Bellingham opening his account in the opening game against Slovenia, England’s focus lands on another one of their young stars, midfielder Phil Foden. Betano is boosting his anytime goal prop from +320 to +355, though my eyes are on him to get an assist at +335.
| Away Team |  | Draw | | Home Team | Time (ET) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slovenia | +410 | +250 | -118 | Serbia | 9:00 PM |
| Denmark | +490 | +265 | -139 | England | 12:00 PM |
| Spain | +118 | +210 | +295 | Italy | 3:00 PM |
Latest EURO 2024 Futures Odds
Here are the latest EURO 2024 Futures odds, heading into the matches on June 20:
| Team | | Yesterday | Team | | Yesterday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | +400 | +400 | Spain | +750 | +650 |
| England | +400 | +400 | Italy | +1400 | +1400 |
| Germany | +450 | +500 | Netherlands | +1400 | +1400 |
| Portugal | +550 | +600 | Belgium | +1700 | +2400 |
We saw a little bit of movement yesterday, largely from Portugal’s dramatic win over Czechia. Germany saw a slight uptick without playing and will likely climb further today with a positive result. Spain saw a bit of a slip to account for those two rises, though a win on Thursday could jump them right back up, if not all the way into the Top 4.
