2015 Gold Cup Betting – Mexico vs. Cuba

Moneyline: Mexico (-1200) vs. Cuba (+5000), Draw (+1200).

Spread: Mexico (-2).

Mexico – six-time Gold Cup winners – have been trending down in recent months, dropping 17 spots in the FIFA rankings, all the way to 40th. The squad will look to begin its climb back to the upper echelons of international soccer with a solid showing at the 2015 Gold Cup. Their tournament gets underway tonight with a mismatch against 104th-ranked Cuba at Soldier Field in Chicago (9:30 PM Eastern).

Mexico recently sent their B team to the 2015 Copa America and had predictably disappointing results, picking up just two points in three Group Stage games and failing to qualify for the knockout phase of the tournament. (They drew Chile and Bolivia and lost to Ecuador.)

With his full squad intact for the Gold Cup, manager Miguel Herrera will be hoping for a much better performance, especially defensively. The squad gave up five goals in three games at the Copa, including three in the draw with Chile.

Mexico’s six Gold Cup titles are the most all-time, but the Americans are hot on their heels with five, including the last edition. Not only is Mexico’s title record at stake in this year’s tournament, so to is a spot in the next Confederations Cup; the winner will earn a spot in the international tournament, which will be played in Russia in 2017.

While Mexico are struggling of late, tonight’s game with Cuba shouldn’t be a problem. El Tri are a huge favorite, not only to win, but to win handily. They are currently two-goal favorites in the handicap, and -1200 to win in the moneyline.

Cuba, who are +5000 to win this game, are essentially fielding an amateur version of a soccer team.  Six of the regular Cuban players can’t enter US due to VISA problems, and they are being managed by an interim coach named Wilmer Benitez. Making matters worse, Mexico have long dominated their nautical neighbors, winning all eight matchups since 1934, including a 5-0 shellacking at the 2011 Gold Cup.

Pick: Mexico -2.

(Photo credit: Marcello Casal Jr/Agência Brasil ([1]) [CC BY 3.0 br (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/br/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped.)