A trip to the quarterfinals is on the line when Russia and Spain square off on Sunday at 10 a.m. ET in the 2018 World Cup. Spain is No. 10 in the FIFA World Rankings, while Russia is No. 70. Spain edged out Portugal to top Group B, while Russia secured second place in Group A. Spain enters this 2018 World Cup fixture as -175 money line favorites, meaning you'd need to bet $175 on a Spanish victory to win $100. Russia enters this must-win match at +550 (wager $100 to win $550), while a draw in regulation is +280. The over-under on total goals scored in this 2018 World Cup match is 2.5. Spain is 9-2 to win it all after opening at 8-1, while Russia has 60-1 World Cup odds to hoist the trophy on its home soil.
Before you enter your 2018 World Cup picks, you need to see what European football expert David Sumpter has to say. Sumpter is an applied mathematician who wrote "Soccermatics," a book that explains how math works inside the sport. Along with other experienced analysts, Sumpter developed the powerful Soccerbot model.
The Soccerbot reads current odds and all team performance data, calculates key metrics and predicts upcoming matches. In nearly three seasons since its inception, the Soccerbot is up an incredible 1,800 percent on bookmakers' closing odds.
The Soccerbot has already nailed draws for Argentina-Iceland (+385) and Brazil-Switzerland (+360). It also correctly predicted Iran upsetting Morocco at +275, just to name a few of its big calls. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, the Soccerbot has digested the film, crunched the numbers and broken down every single player on Spain and Russia. We can tell you the model is leaning Under 2.5 goals, but its much stronger play is on the money line. You can see it only at SportsLine.
The model knows Spain certainly didn't dominate Group B, but it did enough to win it. The squad tied Portugal 3-3 in what was arguably the most exciting match of the World Cup 2018 thus far. Spain followed it up with a 1-0 win over defensive-minded Iran before settling for a 2-2 draw with Morocco, knowing it didn't need any more to move on.
The team survived the shocking firing of coach Julen Lopetegui just days before the World Cup started. Spain's unbeaten streak stands at 23 matches.
Russia entered the 2018 World Cup as the lowest-ranked nation in the tournament. The Russians had no wins in their last seven matches leading up to the start of the World Cup 2018.
However, they quickly turned heads when they scored eight goals in their first two matches, securing two victories and six points against Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Now, they face the 2010 World Cup champions with a chance to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals of the knockout stage.
The last time Russia met Spain was in 2017, with the game ending in a 3-3 draw. Russia's Fyodor Smolov scored two goals against Spain in its November encounter, but he has failed to attempt a single shot in over 100 minutes of action at the 2018 World Cup.
Spain has never lost to Russia in five games, but there have been two draws.
So which hungry nation wins Sunday? Visit SportsLine now to see the strong Spain-Russia money-line pick, all from a European football expert whose powerful model is up 1,800 percent in less than three years.
