England v South Africa: Rugby World Cup Final Odds and Betting Preview

The biggest game in Rugby Union takes place in Yokohama this Sunday as England and South Africa battle it out for the right to be crowned World Champions. The game is a repeat of the 2007 final and this is the first time in 12 years that either side has got to this stage of the competition.

England are the favourites but the South Africans are a resilient side who have had to battle through the competition to get this far. No-one will write off the underdogs but who will come through to lift the Webb Ellis Cup at the end of 80 minutes?
Date: November 2, 2019

Match Odds

England lead the outright result betting by some margin and odds of 1/2 are typical of the market. You can improve on that figure just slightly and the top industry price of 8/15 is delivered by William Hill and BetFred.

Victory for South Africa is available at best odds of 21/10 with Betway while it’s back to BetFred for the best numbers on the draw at 25/1. There isn’t a To Lift the Trophy option at the moment. Remember that England famously needed extra time to beat Australia in 2003 so it’s all about backing the 80 minute result right now.

Eddie Jones’ England side are worthy favourites but they will need to wear down a dour South African defence. Since losing their opening group game to the All Blacks, the Springboks have been exceptionally tight at the back and they restricted the free flowing Japanese to just three points in the quarter final.

If England get sucked into a kicking game as the Welsh did last weekend, the trophy may well fall into the hands of the underdogs.

Other Side Bets

The big rugby union games provide us with a first try scorer market and while not every bookmaker gets involved, there can be some good value at times. For the 2019 World Cup final, England’s Jonny May leads the way and you can claim the winger at 8/1 with Betway. Two teammates follow with Manu Tuilagi at 10/1 and Anthony Watson at 11/1 – both with Betway once again.

South Africa first make an appearance through two players who are both quoted at best odds of 14/1 with Betway. Cheslin Kolbe and Makazole Mapimpi are the men in question and you should certainly take Mapimpi very seriously as he’s already scored five tries in this tournament. That’s more than anyone else on the field and just one less than the leading scorer – Wales’ Josh Adams.

One market that holds our interest is Total Tries. In their respective semi finals, only four tries landed across two games and we don’t expect too much to change when England and South Africa meet in Yokohama. Once again, there aren’t too many options for this bet but most bookies have drawn the line at 3.5.

If you feel that there will be Over 3.5 tries in the final, Betway have a top price of 13/10 but the Under option at 5/9 with 10Bet and RedZone is the way to go in our opinion.

From there, we have plenty of other options but things are starting to get a little more obscure and the list of available bookmakers starts to diminish. Rugby union isn’t a sport that provides a huge range of prop bets so let’s move on now and see if we can pick some winners.

Verdict

Of the markets that we have touched upon, we feel that the Under 3.5 tries pick is the safest of the game. It should be an attritional contest and if South Africa continue the kicking game that saw them ease past the Welsh, there won’t be too many five-pointers registered. Those odds of 5/9 may not be that exciting but that’s a good place in which to start.

As for the winner, England do have the stronger squad and they’ve been more impressive in the tournament so far. Typhoon Hagibis robbed us of what would have been a fascinating game against the French but those knockout wins over Australia and the mighty All Blacks mean that Eddie Jones’ men are worthy favourites. South Africa also lost to New Zealand in the group stage and many punters will take that into account.

There are questions over whether the South Africans will maintain their kicking game but, while it’s not a pretty tactic, it looks to be their best chance of getting over the line. If they allow England to play their preferred, free-flowing style then it will play into their opponents’ hands so why not maintain the same approach?

If they take that kicking route, we feel there could be an upset here with South Africa edging home. Odds of 21/10 are reasonable value but we’ll take a slight hedge by nominating Jonny May to score the first try. England can be fast starters and an early May score could start to dictate the game and force the South Africans to come out and play.

Whatever happens, this should be a dramatic contest and let’s hope these three tips can lead us to a profitable 80 minutes.

Best Bets

• South Africa to win at 21/10 with Betway
• Jonny May to score the first try at 8/1 with Betway
• Under 3.5 Tries at 5/9 with 10Bet