In years past, the soccer preseason was reserved for meaningless friendlies in which bigger teams played exhibition matches against lower level teams in an effort to improve fitness ahead of the coming season. While those types of games do exist, there is now a more organized, better-looking brand of football on offer for fans in the shape of the International Champions Cup.
This tournament has been in play since 2013, but it has looked a little different each year. This season will see the same format as last year, with 12 teams each playing 3 games in the tournament, with the best team crowned as champions at the end of it all. Let’s take a look at the field and be sure to check back for the soccer odds for the ICC 2019.
2019 International Champions Cup Betting Preview
Teams Taking Part
As already mentioned, there will be 12 teams taking part in the International Champions Cup, with the majority coming from the major European Leagues. The complete list is as follows:- Arsenal
- Atletico Madrid
- Benfica
- Bayern Munich
- Fiorentina
- Guadalajara
- Inter Milan
- Juventus
- Manchester United
- AC Milan
- Real Madrid
- Tottenham Hotspur
It is Tottenham Hotspur who come in as the defending champions this season after edging out Borussia Dortmund last year. They topped the 18 teams that took part in 2018, so this will be a more streamlined competition, with the teams involved reduced to 12. This will be the first time that a Mexican team will take part, with Guadalajara in as the obvious underdogs of the 12.
Tournament Details
Each team in the tournament will play 3 games as part of the ICC, with most of those games held in locations across the United States. Besides the games in North America, we will see China and Singapore also play home to matches.The Tournament kicks off on Tuesday, July 16 and will run all the way through until August 10, which will take us very close to the opening of all the major domestic leagues. The good news is that you will be able to tune into every game on either ESPN or ESPN+, so be sure to follow along, as this is usually a very entertaining tournament.
Wagering on the ICC
The best advice that I can give when it comes to wagering on these games is to check on the starting line-ups for each game. While some teams certainly come into the tournament looking to start their season with some silverware, others use it to take a look at their total squad, which means that you might see some bench players very heavily featured.Playing individual halves is certainly one way to go, as you may get the best starting 11 in the first half of a game, followed by a second half that is nothing but fringe and youth players. The form book really is out the window here, simply because we have nothing to go on, although that could change as the tournament progresses.
We are going to do our best to cover as much of the ICC action as we can, so be sure to check in regularly for previews and predictions on upcoming games over the next few weeks.
