At the time of writing, there’s three years until the next World Cup so remind yourself of this if you’re planning to have a bet. If you do insist on having a long-term investment on the competition, make sure it’s with a reputable bookmaker who are likely to be around for the foreseeable future!

If the 2006 World Cup is anything to go by, you can expect South Africa 2010 to be a fairly predictable affair. In Germany last year, there were notably few shocks, with the well-backed teams making it through to the knockout stages. Although much is made of the improvement in African, Asian and North American football, the business end has always been dominated by Brazil, Argentina and the cream of Europe.

However, the fact that it’s being hosted in Africa for the first time will make it difficult for European teams, who generally only win the competition when it’s being played in their own continent. In Japan and South Korea in 2002, it was Brazil who triumphed, while they also claimed the Jules Rimet trophy in USA 94. Cast your minds back to Mexico 86 and it was Argentina who won.

The bookmakers appear to have heeded this stat by putting Brazil and Argentina at the head of their World Cup outright market. It’s also unsurprising to see the same European teams following in their wake, although the qualifying groups should throw up some interesting betting propositions. Naturally, when the tournament gets under way, you can expect a mammoth range of antepost, pre-match and In-Play markets on what is essentially a betting extravaganza.