Good Morning ☀️,

It’s Lucas here, your Chief Predictions Officer at What Are the Odds?

Over the weekend, our friends at KRONIKL bought something to our attention that’s worth sharing. June 22 was the anniversary of Diego Maradona’s two most notable achievements.

The first was none other than his “goal of the century” — a 55-meter, 10-second dash straight into the history books.

The second was his infamous “Hand of God” — proof that with a little bit of faith and a nose full of cocaine, playing volleyball can be a totally valid football strategy.

But that’s enough about the past.

Here’s what’s coming up in this week’s edition of What Are the Odds?

• The hottest FIFA Club World Cup odds, along with a little Swedish Allsvenskan action thrown in for good measure. 🦵⚽

• A trivia question from our friends at Masters of Trivia to see how much you know about Maradona. 🏟️✨

• . 🔥

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This week’s top tips and score predictions, brought to you by CXSports — the leader in odds and score predictions.

⚽ Juventus vs Manchester City
🏟 FIFA Club World Cup
Thursday 26 June; 21:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: If tight, high-quality soccer’s your thing, this might be the best game all week.

• CXSports says: Pep Guardiola seems to be treating the FIFA Club World Cup as somewhat of a reset after a slightly disappointing domestic season. And so far, things seem to be heading in the right direction — they absolutely thrashed Al Ain 6–0 in Atlanta with a rotated XI showing some impressive depth. Of course, Juventus will present a much greater challenge, especially considering their superior head-to-head record in this fixture. With that said, City’s midfield control and creative depth should keep the balance tipped in their favor, but not by a great deal. Expect this to be a close one with a slight edge for Manchester City.

• Score prediction: 1-2 for Manchester City

Option #1

• Bet: Manchester City Victory

• Odds Range: 1.58-1.85

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.57-1.85

⚽ Wydad Casablanca vs Al Ain
🏟 FIFA Club World Cup
Thursday 26 June; 21:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: With a safe double chance play with some decent odds on offer, what’s not to love?

• CXSports says: With Juventus and Manchester City clearly dominating Group G in the FIFA Club World Cup, it’s no surprise that both Wydad Casablanca and Al Ain have had a pretty shocking run so far. In Wydad’s case, we’re talking about a goal difference of -5. As for Al Ain, their run’s been even more catastrophic with a -11 goal difference. That should already give an indication of who’s got the edge here. The fact that Wydad’s still holding their heads up high (thanks in no small part to their fans who’ve already been setting flares off during the City match) while Al Ain’s looking utterly defeated only adds to the story. With that said, neither team here is as consistent as they should be, so this could still go either way.

• Score prediction: 2-1 or 1-2 for either side

Option #1

• Bet: Double Chance (Wydad Casablanca / Al Ain)

• Odds Range: 1.23-1.32

Option #2

• Bet: Wydad Casablanca Victory

• Odds Range: 2.30-2.55

⚽ Al Hilal Riyadh vs Pachuca
🏟 FIFA Club World Cup
Friday 27 June; 03:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: There’s a very high chance this game ends with both teams scoring with some solid odds on this outcome being offered.

• CXSports says: While it wasn’t exactly unexpected, Pachuca has had a disastrous start to their FIFA Club World Cup campaign with two back-to-back losses (1‑2 to Salzburg, 1‑3 to Real Madrid). Meanwhile, Al Hilal has had a modestly better start after managing two 1-1 draws against Real Madrid and Salzburg. That’s probably a good indication of how this match will play out, too — Al Hilal will dominate midfield while setting up plenty of shots (but only finishing a handful), while Pachuca will likely squirm in late in the game for a consolation goal.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Al Hilal

Option #1

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.47-1.63

Option #2

• Bet: Al Hilal Victory

• Odds Range: 1.32-1.50

⚽ Red Bull Salzburg vs Real Madrid
🏟 FIFA Club World Cup
Friday 27 June; 03:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: There’s almost zero chance Real Madrid don’t come out on top here, making these odds particularly good value.

• CXSports says: While Red Bull might give you wings, we’re not so sure if it can give you wins. Case in point — just check out the head-to-head record in this fixture — Real Madrid’s defeated Red Bull Salzburg every single time. Of course, that’s the past, and this game will be taking place in the present — a present in which Real Madrid’s fielding an injury-affected backline. This might open the opportunity for a sneaky goal for Salzburg, although don’t expect it to count for much. While we probably shouldn’t expect them to deliver a thrashing like they did with January’s 5–1 Champions League result, Real Madrid are still vastly superior here, and that will show in the scoreline.

• Score prediction: 1-3 for Real Madrid

Option #1

• Bet: Real Madrid Victory

• Odds Range: 1.15-1.30

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.50-1.75

Want to get the best odds on these predictions?

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Most of you had probably already heard about Maradona’s two most famous goals before. But how many of you know all the details?

Let’s find out with a quick quiz from our friends at Masters of Trivia.

Question: Maradona scored both the "Hand of God" goal and the "Goal of the Century" against England in which stadium?

• A: Estadio Azteca

• B: Maracanã

• C: Camp Nou

• D: San Siro

Think you know the answer?

Read to the end to see if you were right.

⚽ Hammarby IF vs Halmstad
🏟 Swedish Allsvenskan 
Saturday 28 June; 15:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: A nice sure thing here with Hammarby likely to come out on top without too much difficulty.

• CXSports says: Hammarby are currently sitting 2nd in the Allsvenskan with 27 points on the board and a plus +14 goal difference. What’s more, they’ve been nigh on unstoppable at home, going unbeaten in 7 of their last 8 games, including 5 wins in their last 6. Halmstad, for its part, has had a slightly more ordinary trajectory, and currently finds itself swimming in the mid table with a -14 goal difference and only one away win for the whole season. Long story short, Hammarby has a huge edge here.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Hammarby

Option #1

• Bet: Hammarby Victory

• Odds Range: 1.18-1.30

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.81-2.05

⚽ Osters IF vs IK Sirius
🏟 Swedish Allsvenskan
Saturday 28 June; 17:30 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Some big odds on offer if you’re willing to make a slightly risky punt. Otherwise, the double chance play’s hard to beat.

• CXSports says: The head-to-head history in this fixture is telling — in the last five meetings, Osters has gone unbeaten, while Sirius is still looking for its first win. With that said, three of those games ended in a draw, so the difference between these two might not be as great as it would first seem. Further, Sirius’s attacking side could cause a few complications for Osters’ defense, as solid as it might be. This should give us a tight game where the ultimate difference could come down to something as slight as Osters’ home advantage.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Osters

Option #1

• Bet: Osters Victory

• Odds Range: 2.20-2.43

Option #2

• Bet: Double Chance (Osters / Sirius)

• Odds Range: 1.20-1.33

⚽ Degerfors IF vs Brommapojkarna
🏟 Swedish Allsvenskan
Sunday 29 June; 14:00 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Another game with a solid double chance play that’s likely to hit while still offering some decent odds.

• CXSports says: With the home advantage and a superior record in previous head-to-heads, Degerfors are coming into this game with a big psychological edge. Of course, psychology can’t make up for technical shortcomings, and while Degerfors do have the clear edge if head-to-head history is all we look at, recent league performances would indicate that these two are coming into this on relatively even terms, although Degerfors still holds a very slight edge here. In short, this should be a close game that could go either way, although Degerfors have a slightly better chance at coming out on top.

• Score prediction: 2-1 for Degerfors

Option #1

• Bet: Degerfors Victory

• Odds Range: 2.10-2.48

Option #2

• Bet: Double Chance (Degerfors / Brommapojkarna)

• Odds Range: 1.21-1.31

⚽ Hacken vs GAIS Gothenburg
🏟 Swedish Allsvenskan
Sunday 29 June; 16:30 (Europe/Paris)

• Why we’re watching: Yet another tight game with some decent odds on a high-probability double chance play.

• CXSports says: In the last year or so, these two have played two head-to-heads, with GAIS winning both (1-2 and 3-0). And looking at recent form, this game could very well go the same way, too — in their last five Allsvenskan fixtures, GAIS has gone unbeaten (3W - 2D), while Hacken has been considerably more patchy (1W, 2D, 2L). That’s not to say Hacken is without hope entirely. There is a chance they could turn their home advantage into precisely that — an advantage — making this a potentially close game that’s too close to call.

• Score prediction: 1-2 or 2-1 for either side

Option #1

• Bet: Double Chance (Hacken / GAIS)

• Odds Range: 1.21-1.30

Option #2

• Bet: Both Teams to Score (Yes)

• Odds Range: 1.53-1.62

Make your sportsbook work for you!

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Your weekly dose of inspiration, brought to you by Masters of Trivia.

There’s no doubt about it. Diego Maradona is one of the greatest football talents to ever take to the field. But it wasn’t just his talent and hard work that made him great.

Here’s what the great man once had to say about himself.

Moral of the story?

If the reward is worth it, then sometimes taking a little risk is absolutely the way forward.

The “Hand of God” is testament to this.

Want to learn more about Diego Maradona?

Masters of Trivia is the only trivia app where every player is rewarded. Play all the trivia quizzes you can handle and earn real rewards simply for participating.

Take Masters of Trivia for a spin with the Diego Maradona Trivia Quiz today.

PS: The answer to this week’s question was [A] — Maradona scored his “Hand of God” and “Goal of the Century” goals against England at Estadio Azteca. Discover more trivia like this with the Diego Maradona Trivia Quiz.