Euro 2024 futures bets, Round of 16 picks by Chris ‘The Bear’ Fallica
"Bear Bets" are real wagers that Chris "The Bear" Fallica is actually making.
Overall tournament record: 8-18, -10.5 units
What an exciting time for soccer fans and bettors as we get to watch all the fun Euro and Copa América action on FOX and the FOX Sports app.
As for gambling on these matches, I'll give you my best bets throughout the tournaments. Basically, if I see an edge, and I'm betting on it, I'll share it. I want us all to win.
Remember, only bet what you are comfortable with.
I believe in transparency, so I'll be sharing my tournament betting record over the next several weeks. It's been a rough start, but I have a few futures bets I like that should help us turn this thing around.
Let's dive into the action.
(All times ET)
FUTURES BETS TO MAKE NOW
The Netherlands have been erratic, to say the least, in this tournament. They nearly beat France and then, next match saw their defense look inconsistent against Austria. But on this side of the draw, I think the Dutch are dangerous. They should get past Romania, who hasn’t looked great since beating Ukraine. They would then get either a rematch with Austria — where they likely wouldn't concede another own goal or see a Virgil van Djik mental breakdown. Get through that, and it's likely England or Italy — both of whom have warts. So, as you can see, on this side of the draw, the path is there.
And if you want to gamble a bit more and guess who advances through from the more difficult side, you can get 14-1 price on a Netherlands-Spain final and 18-1 on a Netherlands-France final.
PICK: Netherlands to reach Final (+350)
PICK: Netherlands-Spain Final (+1400) (½ unit)
PICK: Netherlands-France Final (+1800) (½ unit)
PLAYER OF THE TOURNAMENT FUTURES
There is still no clear frontrunner in this category, so I’ll take a stab with a couple of decent prices. If France wins, I do think N’Golo Kante has a great chance to win that award, given how Kylian Mbappe has been affected by injury. Spain has been the best team in the tourney so far, and a healthy Pedri has been a huge reason why. Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal have gotten the headlines, but Pedri is the motor that makes this team go.
At these prices, these two are definitely worth a sprinkle.
PICK: Pedri to win Player of Tournament (+2300) (½ unit)
PICK: N'Golo Kante to win Player of Tournament (+1400) (½ unit)
Italy vs. Switzerland, 3 p.m. Saturday, FS1 and the FOX Sports App
There’s an excellent chance this game goes to penalties as well, but Draw and Under 2.5 are auto bets here for me. Donnarumma has arguably been the best player at the tournament so far and should make it tough for the Swiss to score, despite defender Riccardo Calafiori missing the match. It's not like Italy has been great on attack either, needing a 98th minute goal against Croatia to secure the knockout rounds.
I like 0-0 or 1-1. Let's get this thing to extra time!
PICK: Italy-Switzerland draw (+190)
PICK: Italy-Switzerland 0-0 (+500) (½ unit)
PICK: Under 2.5 goals
Chris "The Bear" Fallica has covered sports for nearly three decades. While college football has been his focus, he also enjoys the NFL, Soccer, Golf, Tennis, MLB, NHL and Horse Racing, with an "occasional" wager on such events. Chris recently won the inaugural Circa Football Invitational and finished in the Top 10 of the Golden Nugget Football Contest. He's a multiple-time qualifier for the NHC Handicapping Championship. Remember, "The less you bet, the more you lose when you win!" Follow him on Twitter @chrisfallica.
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