Portugal 2026 World Cup Team Preview, Betting Odds, Predictions & Best Bets
Portugal have never won the World Cup, but they’re amongst the favorites to do so in 2026. In what is likely to be Cristiano Ronaldo’s swansong for his country, it will be interesting to see how far Roberto Martinez’s men can go in this year’s World Cup tournament..
The Portugal squad features some fantastic talent. Whether this will be enough to improve on their Quarter Final appearance in 2022 is yet to be seen, but it’s clear to see that the Portuguese will be a force to be reckoned with in this year’s World Cup.
Portugal 2026 World Cup Betting Odds
- To Win World Cup:
- To Reach Final:
- To Reach Semifinal:
- To Reach Quarterfinal:
- To Win Group K:
- To Advance From Group:
- Group: Group K
- FIFA Rank: 5
Most sportsbooks have priced Portugal at around +1100 to win the 2026 World Cup. This puts them as sixth favorites, behind Spain, France, England, Brazil and Argentina. We can see why Portugal is heavily fancied. They’re the current Nations League champions and possess a squad full of quality.
Portugal start their World Cup campaign in Group K, alongside DR Congo, Colombia and debutants Uzbekistan. They shouldn’t have any issues qualifying from the Group and easily at that. How far they’ll progress is the big question – Portugal reached the Quarter Finals last time out but failed to get past the Round of 16 in the previous three editions.
Sportsbooks have priced Portugal at +500 to reach the Final and +200 to reach the Semi Final stage.
Portugal 2026 World Cup Best Bet
As much as I admire the Portuguese squad and the talents within it, I can’t see Portugal going all the way. Even a Semi Final appearance will be tough to achieve, despite the quality on show. A second consecutive Quarter Final appearance is most likely, odds of +100 are available at most sportsbooks.
However, for my best bet, I’m looking at Goalscorer markets. Cristiano Ronaldo is still Portugal’s man most likely to. For Ronaldo to finish as Portugal’s top scorer, odds of +225 are available. If you consider the Group games alone where Ronaldo will feature in, this market represents good value.
Portugal Best Bet: Cristiano Ronaldo Team Top Scorer (+225)
Portugal 2026 World Cup Players to Watch
Cristiano Ronaldo: We’ve mentioned him a couple of times already in this article, but Portugal’s main man remains Ronaldo. In what is almost certainly his final tournament for his nation, Ronaldo will be determined to add the elusive World Cup title to his collection of winners’ medals. We’ve looked at the odds for Ronaldo to be Portugal’s top goalscorer, odds of +2000 are available for the Seleção das Quinas star man to top the overall goalscoring list.
Bruno Fernandes: Fernandes is another vital player for Portugal. Fernandes has 28 goals and 26 assists in his international career so far and heads into this year’s World Cup in fine individual form.
Joao Neves: We’re excited to see how Neves will perform at his first ever World Cup. After establishing himself as one of the best young talents in world soccer, Neves has enjoyed a great season with club side Paris Saint Germain. Firmly established in Roberto Martinez’s squad, we’re looking forward to seeing the midfielder in action on the world’s biggest stage.
Portugal World Cup History
Portugal has never won a World Cup. It’s only in the 2000s that Portugal started to regularly qualify for the tournament. Before 2002, they had only qualified for two previous World Cup tournaments, firstly in 1966, then in 1986.
Portugal have, though, took part in every World Cup tournament since 2002. Their most successful year came in 2006, where they reached the Semi Finals. Since then, Portugal have reached the Round of 16 twice. In 2022, they reached the Quarter Final stage but were beaten by Morocco by a goal to nil.
Photo Credit: AP/Peter Morrison
