Iran vs United States - 2022 World Cup Betting Guide

Iran Team Info – A Possible Unexpected Danger

The Iranian football team had its best era in the 90s through to early 2000s. They became 15th in the football world rankings in 2005, but after their greatest player Ali Daei retired, the team went into a slow decline. When current manager, Carlos Queiroz, first signed for the Iranian team in 2011, it would bring positive changes to the team. By 2019, in his last year, he brought Iran to the AFC Asian Cup semi-finals, and though the team were knocked out by Japan, it was a huge step forwards. Queiroz then moved to Colombia, to be the manager of their national team. He returned to the Iranian national team this year, and with the qualifiers that they had, there is a good chance that the team is ready to make history and reach the round of 16 for the first time.

Strikers Mehdi Taremi, Alireza Jahanbaksh, and Sardar Azmoun scored 11 goals combined in the qualifiers. Their midfield includes players such as Ahmad Nourollahi, Saeid Ezatolahi, Samman Ghoddos and Omid Ebrahimi, amongst others. Ehsan Hajsafi, who has 119 caps for his country, is their captain and main defender. Next to him, there is Milad Mohammadi, who is also his teammate in the Greek football club, AEK Athens. They also have Al-Ahli duo Hossein Kanaanizadegan, and Shojae Khalilzadeh. In goal, they can field Alireza Beiranvand, who plays in the domestic league for Persepolis.

United States Team Info – Impressively Talented Players

The United States won 7 out of their 14 games in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers, which was just enough to secure qualification. The United States reached the semi-finals, and finished in 3rd place in the 1930 World Cup, but in recent times, their best run came in 2002, when they made it to the quarter finals. Otherwise, the United States have always either been knocked out in the group stage, or the round of 16. In 2018, the United States missed out on the World Cup, after finishing in 5th place in the CONCACAF final round. In the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which is held every 2 years, the United States won their 7th title in 2021. Since 2002, the United States have either won the competition, finished second, finished third, or finished fourth.

In their current squad, the United States have Zack Steffen in goal. In front of him, they can pick from either DeAndre Yedlin, Walker Zimmerman, Aaron Long, or Miles Robinson, all of whom play in the MLS; or they can choose to pick John Brooks, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, or Sergino Dest, who all play abroad. In midfield, they can use Kellyn Acosta, Cristian Roldan, or Sebastian Lletget, who all play in the MLS; or Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams,or Luca de la Torre, who play in the Italian, English, and Spanish football leagues. Their key player is striker Christian Pulisic, who plays for Chelsea. In addition to Pulisic, they can field the youngster Timothy Weah, Giovannia Reyna, or Brendan Aaronson; or slightly older players such as Jordan Morris, Paul Arriola, and Gyasi Zardes

Iran vs United States Head-to-head

Iran and the United States have played against each other twice before. The first time they met was in the 1998 World Cup, when they were placed into the same group. They played against each other in the second round of games, and Iran beat the United States 2-1. The two sides met again 2 years later in a friendly, and the match ended 1-1.

Iran vs United States Betting Preview

It has been a while since the two teams have played against each other, but going simply by their positions in the world rankings, the United States should have the edge over Iran. That being said, the difference between the two sides may be a whole lot closer than the 8 places that separate them in the world rankings.

You can find plenty of bets on either team to win by certain criteria that will make the odds longer, but if you are not completely convinced that either team will win, there are options such as draw no bet and double chance, where you can cover multiple possible outcomes.

Double Chance

Double chance offers you the possibility to bet on the match ending in two of the possible outcomes. You will find the odds on Iran to win or both teams to draw, the United States to win or both teams to draw, and Iran or the United States to win. Double chance bets do come with shorter odds, but in return you have better insurance.

Draw No Bet

With draw no bet, the option of a draw is completely eliminated. You will be able to pick Iran to win or the United States to win, and in either case if the game ends in a draw, then your money will be returned to you.

Asian Handicaps

Handicaps are a way that you can boost a team’s odds by giving them a margin that they should win by, or you can use a handicap that favours that team and gives them a margin by which they should not lose, which will reduce the odds but be far safer to place. There are three options for handicaps, and they all work similarly but with small differences.

If you were to bet on Iran to win with a handicap of -1.5, this will require them to win the game at least 2 goals clear of the United States. If you give Iran a handicap of -2, this will mean that they need to win the game by 3 or more goals. If they win the game by only 2 goals, then the game is considered a draw and your money will be returned. If you give Iran a handicap of -1.75, this will split your stake into two equal bets of -1.5 and -2. If Iran wins the game by 3 or more goals, then you will receive your returns. If Iran wins the game by 2 goals, then you will receive half your stake back.

You can also find handicaps that favour Iran or the United States, which will be +1.5, +1.75, +2, and so on.

Over/Under Total Goals

You can bet on how many goals will be scored by Iran and the United States in their group match with the total goals bet. Here, you can simply pick a betting line, such as 3.5, and then bet on whether the game will end with over that number of goals, or under.

And Lots More

You will find that we have a massive catalogue of bets that you can pick from. There are many bets that relate to incidents that may or may not occur during a game. Iran to score first, the United States to win the first half, both teams to score, Iran to score in both halves, Iran to keep a clean sheet, the either team to score within the first 20 minutes, Iran to win both halves, and all the variations of these bets will all be available, and you may be interested in our match combos, where some of these bets are combined with matchbets, double chance bets, and more.

Betting on the World Cup matches can be highly exciting, but because of the sheer number of games, sometimes it can be easy to become carried away. We strongly urge you not to overspend as it can lead to frustration and in some cases, you may spend more money than you can afford to lose. If you need more information on how you can control your gambling, you can check out gambleaware.co.uk, where there is plenty of good advice and tips.