England lays down a marker at the World Cup

World Cup may be five months late, with the costs spiraling into the billions of dollars and the final played a week before Christmas Day. But that has yet to put soccer lovers from Canada, the United States, and England off traveling to Qatar. It's the first time the play has been hosted in the Arab World, with the locals out to put on a show. Qatar isn't a region famous for its love of professional sports, but things are changing before our eyes.

Brazil entered as the pre-competition betting favorite with all major sportsbooks and many TV pundits. That's understandable, as the Samba Boys rank as the tournament's most successful team in terms of trophies won and finals played in. They sit just ahead of Germany, with the Europeans knowing a win in Qatar would move them to the top of the charts. It promises to be a tense few weeks.

You can have your say on all matches from Qatar thanks to the biggest and best online bookmakers. They allow registered members to make predictions on the games and place bets. There are also predictions, live scores, in-play betting odds, commentary, and promotions, including free bets. If you intend to place a bet on the World Cup, it's important to check the laws in your region. These differ from country to country and state to state. Sports betting in Alabama remains restricted, but New York allows residents and visitors to gamble.

Fans Cheering At The World Cup 2022 - Freepik

Three Lions roar on matchday one

Argentina and current holders France can also be found near the head of the betting list. But another soccer-loving country impressed in their opening match, and neutrals are now clambering to support them ahead of the next match. That team is the 1966 World Cup winners and Euro 2020 finalists in England. But can the Three Lions go all the way? 

This article looks back at how they performed against Iran on Monday and what that game told us about their chances of going to a second World Cup. There's genuine excitement in the England camp, but is it concerning a good start or the beginning of an adventure that will go down in history? Only time will tell on that one, and we must wait until near the end of the year for our answer.

But concentrating on what we do know, England was sublime when thrashing Qatar 6-2 in their opening match. That win saw England race into the pole position in Group B, and judging by their efforts so far, they will take some shifting. How good was England against Iran, and did the final scoreline flatters them, or could they have scored a few more goals?

Time will tell 

How good England was on Monday will be revealed later in the group. Were they that good, or was Iran hopeless? The beaten side lost their first-choice keeper in the opening minutes of play, and after six months of preparation, it was a disastrous start. Their opponents made them pay a hefty price.

England scored six goals and had chances to make it eight or nine. The result made a bit of a mockery of Iran's involvement in the tournament, but they were good enough to punish their opponents on the break. England's goals were scored by Bellingham, Sterling, Rashford, Grealish, and a double from Saka, including a peach of a first goal.

Iran was all at sea, and their replacement keeper made a hash of things. He was responsible for at least three goals and could have done better with most of them, although Saka's strike was almost unstoppable. They did respond through goals from Taremi, who netted a double, including a penalty deep into stoppage time. 

Iran knows they must improve before playing Wales. England is now the red-hot betting favorite to defeat the USA on Friday. Anything less than a win against the Welsh could signal the end of their chances of going through to the knockout stages. Victory would help erase the memory of that defeat by England and catapult them back into contention for one of the top two places and a chance to play knockout soccer.