Euro 2024 is getting closer and closer. It’s now exactly two weeks until the biggest football tournament of the year, at least for fans of the beautiful game in Europe, begins.
For the first time since 2006, a major tournament will take place on German soil, where Europe’s big hitters, plus several smaller nations, will be looking to do the business.
In this article, we’re looking at player bets, focusing on the ‘Top Scorer’ market, so let’s get stuck in and see what players appeal.
Euro top scorer predictions & tips
I’m going to get straight to it here and say that when it comes to backing a top scorer ahead of this tournament, I’m not massively taken by any of the favourites. Of course, the likes of Mbappe and Kane are world-class finishers and both will likely enjoy themselves in Germany, though at what in relation to a market of this nature can only be described as short odds, I won’t be siding with either.
Instead, I’m going with Phil Foden at a decent price. 25/1 looks a little on the large side.
Not a striker, of course, but very much a goal threat, and 24-year-old will arrive at the European Championships having enjoyed his best ever goal-scoring season, showing all that he is very much a player with an eye for goals.
During the 2023/34 Premier League season, Foden averaged 0.60 goals per game, scoring all types of goals, from the relatively simple to the rather brilliant.
Last season, shooting 3.31 times on average, Foden also took more shots than he ever has before (on average) as he developed into a player looking to score on a regular basis, which really does make me think that odds of 25/1 are a bit big.
He’ll likely get plenty of offensive freedom from Gareth Southgate, so we really shouldn’t be surprised if Foden’s fine scoring form extends to this tournament. I certainly won’t be.
Market leaders
According to the UK betting market, there are several players hotly fancied to score goals at Euro 2024. See below for the current market leaders.
Team | Player | Top Scorer Odds |
France | Kylian Mbappe | 5/1 (bet365, William Hill, 888Sport) |
England | Harry Kane | 11/2 (bet365, PaddyPower) |
Portugal | Cristian Ronaldo | 12/1 (bet365, Betvictor) |
England | Jude Bellingham | 16/1 (bet365, SkyBet, Coral) |
Belgium | Romelu Lukaku | 20/1 (William Hill, 888Sport) |
Last five Euro top scorers
At previous tournaments, we saw some very high-quality forwards thrive in terms of goals, with some huge names scooping this prestigious individual award, while we’ve also seen a few unlikely contenders.
The table below shows previous European Championship top scorers, their nation and how many goals they scored to take the crown.
Year | Team | Player | Goals Scored |
2021 | Portugal, Czech Republic | Cristiano Ronaldo, Patrick Schick | 5 |
2016 | France | Antoine Griezmann | 6 |
2012 | Russia, Germany, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Portugal | Alan Dzagoev, Mario Gomez, Fernando Torres, Mario Mandzukic, Mario Balotelli, Cristiano Ronaldo | 3 |
2008 | Spain | David Villa | 4 |
2004 | Czech Republic | Milan Baros | 5 |
2000 | Netherlands, Yugoslavia | Patrick Kluivert, Savo Milosevic | 5 |
You might think that to win this award a player will need to score a glut of goals, but as the table above shows, in recent times, players have landed the prize by scoring relatively modest totals. A handful of players all top-scored with three goals in 2012, while David Villa only needed to net four to be named top scorer back in 2008.
Antoine Griezmann became the highest scoring player at a single European Championships this century by notching six goals in his native France back in 2016.
Will there be any previous top scorers at Euro 2024?
There will likely be three previous top scorers in action at Euro 2024. Despite now being very much a veteran, Cristiano Ronaldo is due for one last major tournament, giving the Portuguese goal machine the chance to top score at the Euros for the third time following his antics in both 2012 and 2021.
Joint top scorer from the last renewal of this tournament, Patrick Schick, who has had a fine season with German league and cup winners Bayer Leverkusen, will also be in attendance as his Czech Republic team look to upset the odds.
Finally, key man for the French, Antoine Griezmann, who was outstanding in 2016, and as France reached the final of the World Cup in late 2022, will be back for another crack, hoping to regain the crown he wore having scored six goals two tournaments ago.
Outsider in with a chance
Of course, it’s not all about the big dogs, of which there will be quite a few in Germany.
Someone seemingly less likely could come to the fore and bang in the goals at this tournament, it’s happened before, while there are some interesting contenders at quite chunky odds, that’s for sure.
One such player is Arsenal star Kai Havertz, who at 33/1, looks quite generously priced.
The German, who looks set to play a big part for his team, either as a floating player or as a false nine, comes off the back of his best domestic season in a scoring sense since leaving the Bundesliga back in 2020, scoring 13 league goals for the Gunners, while his recent goals/minutes ratio for Die Mannschaft is far from poor.
At the World Cup in 2022, Havertz scored two in two, while he’s since notched five goals in 16 appearances for his nation, averaging 0.50 goals per 90 minutes.
It’s also worth mentioning that the Germans have a relatively simple group on paper, at least more simple than some of the other big nations, who will find themselves pitted against another big-hitter early on.
Top scorer predictions & tips
To confirm, ahead of the hotly awaited Euro 2024, our best top-scorer bets are as follows:
Phil Foden @ 25/1 (Bet now with bet365)
Kai Havertz @ 33/1 (Bet now with bet365)
Looking for more Euro 2024 content? You can read all of our Euro articles, including useful stats, trends, tips and predictions, here.
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