Argentina opened as a heavy favorite for the July 3 round-of-32 match in Miami, priced at -700 on the three-way moneyline against Cape Verde at +1400, with a draw at +700.
The gap is the widest of the knockout stage so far, reflecting Argentina’s status as defending champion and its two group-stage wins — 3-0 over Algeria and 2-0 over Austria.
Cape Verde reached the knockouts with three group-stage draws, enough for second place in Group H despite the island nation’s population of roughly 500,000.
Odds to advance were even more lopsided, with Argentina at -1600 and Cape Verde at +900, while the total opened at 2.5 goals with the over favored at -175.