WORLD CUP BETTING PREVIEW - PANAMA VS ENGLAND

World Cup

2026-06-27 - Panama vs England

A Sports Betting Preview by Auls

Panama v England
Football: World Cup Group L Match Day 3
Saturday 27th June 2026 - Kick Off 5pm (EST)
British Time 10pm

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Panama

Eight years ago, Panama made their debut at the World Cup Finals and they left Russia without a point, but there is no doubt that this is a growing, developing nation and one that has improved significantly in the time between World Cup Finals appearances. They are heading home at the end of the Group Stage, but Panama have shown much more about themselves at the 2026 World Cup Finals and that gives them more momentum to continue on the current trajectory.

In that World Cup hosted in Russia, Panama did score twice, but they conceded eleven times in losing to Belgium, England and Tunisia. Over the two Group games in this tournament, Panama may not have scored, but consecutive 0-1 defeats to Ghana and Croatia in games where they have given as good as they got has to be an encouragement for the squad, management and for all of the supporters cheering them on.

One of the big pre-tournament concerns for Panama was the lack of high quality opponents that they have tended to face and that has perhaps contributed to the results here. They should have avoided defeat against Ghana having had more shots on target, while Panama rattled Croatia early and finished with more shots than them in the second game and that is perhaps a part of the development curve the nation has to tread as they continue to improve.

Thomas Christiansen has to be credited for the work he has done with this Panama team and he may be more willing to rotate his squad throughout these ninety minutes to give everyone a taste of the World Cup. That makes picking a likely eleven a bit more difficult, although wholesale changes would be a surprise.

Predicted Line Up: Mosquera, Ramos, Cordoba, Andrade, Murillo, Blackman, Harvey, Barcenas, Martinez, Rodriguez and Fajardo (5-4-1)

England

For all of the high praise ringing in the England ears after the 4-2 win over Croatia, most would have expected to hear the worst following a tepid goalless draw with Ghana. There has to be plenty of credit given to Ghana, but England's lack of creativity once again brought out the critics who felt the squad had left behind talented attacking players that could make the difference.

Cole Palmer and Phil Foden will not be playing in this tournament and so it is up to the England players to pick themselves up and work on solutions when they are up against low block teams. The hope is that the stronger nations expected to be met in the Knock Out Stages would not employ such tactics and that would aid England, but Thomas Tuchel will be looking for a reaction from his team after a disappointing result.

On the face of things it has not impacted England too badly- if they win this game, the likelihood is that they will top the Group and face one of the third place finishers in the Last 32. However, England could find themselves in a very tricky portion of the Knock Out Bracket if they do fail to win and either Ghana or Croatia finish above them in the final Group standings.

A couple of changes were made for the game against Ghana, but those did not pay off and neither did the substitutions. The likes of Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford have been dealing with knocks, but could be involved, and the manager may choose to make one or two more changes just to freshen things up.

Predicted Line Up: Pickford, James, O'Reilly, Stones, Guehi, Anderson, Rice, Rogers, Madueke, Rashford and Watkins (4-2-3-1)

Head to Head

These nations met in the 2018 World Cup Group Stage and England ran away 6-1 winners.

Prediction

Despite the draw with Ghana, England are still in a position to win this Group and that is going to be the aim on Saturday with the manager hoping to deliver on the expectations of the fans.

Everyone will be expecting England to come out with much more authority for this fixture and Thomas Tuchel could choose to just freshen up his starting eleven to see if there are others ready to step up.

No matter the team selected, England will be expecting to beat a Panama team who have shown plenty of heart and character, but who are still developing to be able to compete with some of the best international teams.

Panama remain a step or two behind the likes of the co-hosts Canada, United States and Mexico in this Confederation, but they have shown in the 0-1 defeats to Ghana and Croatia that they can provide a threat and defend with real organisation.

A couple of inexperienced moments have prevented Panama from earning the first World Cup points and it would be a surprise if they are able to do that against an England team that will be focused on finishing top of the section.

England will have to deal with a defence that will have plenty of numbers, but that is the challenge for a squad missing creative influences like Phil Foden and Cole Palmer. Solutions have to be found and while this not likely to be a repeat of the 6-1 win over Panama in Russia eight years ago, England should be able to exploit one or two moments of indecision to earn a victory.

There were one or two sloppy moments at the back against Ghana on Tuesday that will be a concern, but in the main England looked pretty comfortable dealing with what was thrown at them and that could be the case in this final Group fixture too.

Panama will have a go as they look to create some history, but they may just come up short in the final third and England should be able to win this game with a clean sheet.

The Pick :

Panama 0-3 England

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back England Win to Nil at 1.89 with Cloudbet