World Cup 2022: Latest Wales odds, previews and history
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Wales World Cup betting odds, tips and latest news
Wales will be competing in only their second World Cup when the tournament gets under way on Sunday.
The Dragons have had recent success at the European Championship, reaching the semi-finals in 2016 and round of 16 last year, but last appeared at the World Cup in 1958.
We have created a page dedicated to the latest Wales World Cup betting tips, news, fixtures and a brief history of their performance on the biggest stage of all.
Rob Page ended a 64-year wait by guiding Wales to the World Cup finals in dramatic fashion. The Dragons finished five points behind group winners Belgium in second place which meant they had to take the play-off route to qualify for Qatar.
Gareth Bale’s stunning free-kick and another great finish in the second half set the Welshmen on the way to a 2-1 victory over Austria in March but they had to wait more than 10 weeks to play the final because of the war in Ukraine.
The Ukrainians beat Scotland in their semi-final, but an own goal from Andriy Yarmolenko, subsequently awarded to Bale, sealed a 1-0 victory for Wales in Cardiff.
Wales World Cup fixtures
USA: November 21, 1900 kick-off GMT, ITV, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan
Iran: November 25, 1000 kick-off GMT, BBC 1, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan
England: November 29, 1900 kick-off GMT, BBC1, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan
Wales manager
Page took over as caretaker manager in November 2020 when Ryan Giggs was arrested for assault and his tenure in charge has been highly successful, although it should not be forgotten that it was the former Manchester United player who steered Wales to Euro 2020.
The former Wales defender had spells in charge of Port Vale and Northampton, but was at Nottingham Forest when he was named Wales Under-21 coach on a four-year deal.
Page was then promoted to assistant coach in August 2019 when he replaced Osian Roberts and his work in improving the defence led to him taking over the national team on a temporary basis 15 months later.
Under Page, Wales were promoted to the top tier in the Nations League, but their crowning moment came in the capital in June when Page said: “It’s encouraging, it’s good, we are going in the right direction. We need to continue to develop these young players that we have done for the last few years, and it’s only going to get better for us.”
Wales’ key players
Gareth Bale
One of the greatest players to grace the national team, it’s fair to say Wales probably would not have qualified without their talisman and captain. The former Real Madrid star, now with MLS side Los Angeles FC, completed his hat-trick with a crucial stoppage-time winner in Belarus during the group phase and his contribution in the play-offs proved invaluable despite having played very little football in Madrid.
Aaron Ramsey
Ramsey, like Bale, has had his injury problems, but the Nice midfielder is a vital cog in Wales’ midfield and his double in a 5-1 victory over Belarus in their penultimate group game helped keep Czech Republic at arm’s length. The former Arsenal midfielder has scored 20 goals in 75 appearances for Wales and he will be a key figure in Page’s team if fit.
Harry Wilson
Wilson has established himself as a permanent fixture in the Wales midfield and along with Brennan Johnson represents the future of the national team when Bale and Ramsey retire from international football, possibly after the World Cup. The Fulham star broke the deadlock goal against Belgium in Wales’ opening World Cup qualifier, his fifth for his country.
Wales World Cup history
1958 – Sweden (Manager: Jimmy Murphy)
Wales finished second in a qualifying group also comprising Czechoslovakia and East Germany, but they were given a second chance by FIFA because Israel had reached the final qualifying round without playing a match because of political protests from their opponents.
FIFA ordered a play-off with one of the best-placed European teams, but Belgium turned down the opportunity, so Wales took advantage by beating Israel 4-0 on aggregate to make it to the finals.
Wales drew all three games with Hungary, Mexico and Sweden as they finished second in the group with three points, the same as the Magyars. Wales overcame a half-time deficit to beat the Hungarians 2-1 in the play-off and set up a quarter-final with Brazil, who won 1-0 courtesy of Pele’s smart finish midway through the second half.
