FIFA Club World Cup Group H Preview, Best Bets, and Predictions

By Jake Osgathorpe (@JAKEOZZ)

The Club World Cup kicks off on Saturday, June 14th, and FanDuel Sportsbook is offering a variety of Club World Cup betting odds, including odds for each group.

Let's dive into Group H -- which features Real Madrid, RB Salzburg, Al-Hilal and Pachuca -- and see how you should bet the group.

FIFA Club World Cup Group H Preview

The mega-stars of Real Madrid head to the US as the favorites to lift silverware, listed at +410. So far this season, Los Blancos have managed just one trophy -- the UEFA Super Cup way back in August -- having to watch their arch-rivals Barcelona do the domestic double.

They travel west with a new manager in the dugout as former player Xabi Alonso takes over from Carlo Ancelotti after an impressive trophy-laden spell at Bayer Leverkusen, and he inherits an all-star cast of players. The question is, will he have enough time to get his messages across, and will the players respond positively to his more structured playing style, one that is opposite to Ancelotti’s laissez-faire approach?

Whatever the answer to that question, Real should top this group comfortably.

Saudi side Al-Hilal are their closest challengers, according to the market, with Al-Za’eem also full of big names from European soccer. They have more individual quality than their group rivals, and they now boast an excellent manager in the dugout, too, with Simone Inzaghi joining after leaving Champions League runners-up Inter.

Salzburg and Pachuca make up the group. The Austrians’ domestic dominance has been broken, with Salzburg failing to win the last two titles, while they were also woeful in the Champions League this season.

Pachuca, from Mexico, made it to the Intercontinental Cup final last year -- the newly re-named yearly Club World Cup -- only to lose 3-0 to Real Madrid, with the gulf between the sides clear. They could well be a match for their other group opponents, though.

FIFA Club World Cup Group H Betting Pick

Al-Hilal to Qualify (+105)

Real are strongly fancied to win the group, and it would be a huge shock to see them fail to do so.

Qualifying in second is where to focus, and at the listed odds, Al-Hilal are appealing at +105. It’s surprising to see them and Salzburg so close in the market.

Al-Hilal have an incredible amount of talent in comparison to their other two group rivals, with a strong spine featuring Moroccan World Cup hero goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, former Napoli and Chelsea centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly, Portugal midfielder Ruben Neves and Serbia striker Aleksandar Mitrovic.

Add in full-backs Renan Lodi and Joao Cancelo as well as midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Brazilian wingers Malcom and Marcos Leonardo, and the newly appointed Inzaghi has a potentially excellent starting XI.

The new manager should set them up well for success, and they are enticing at plus odds.

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Jake Osgathorpe is not a FanDuel employee. Wagering based on the above content does not guarantee a successful outcome. Always do your own due diligence and use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.

Jake Osgathorpe is deputy football editor at Sporting Life and This Week’s Acca.