World Cup
2025-10-13 - Wales vs Belgium
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: World Cup Qualifier
Monday 13th October 2025 - Kick Off 7:45pm
This game is live on TV
Wales
It is never going to be acceptable for any Welsh fan to watch their team lose to England in any contest, but manager Craig Bellamy knows this World Cup Qualifier is way more important than any international friendly. He will be demanding his team come out with much more focus than they showed at Wembley Stadium on Thursday and especially with this Qualifying Group being blown wide open after results on Match Day 7.
They have a game in hand over Group leaders North Macedonia and Wales are only trailing them by 2 points, while knowing they are hosting that opponent in the November Qualifiers. In between is Belgium though and Wales can only maintain control of top spot in this section by winning this game. However, the pressure is on knowing that a defeat would mean Wales likely need to win both remaining games to have any hope of earning a Play Off spot.
Wales have lost 3 of their last 4 games, although the last two defeats have both been in friendly settings against Canada and England. Prior to the defeat to Canada, Wales had won 4 in a row in front of their passionate home fans, which included helping them earn Promotion to League A of the Nations League.
Belgium
A late goal conceded in Skopje had been the only setback Belgium had had in this World Cup Qualifying Group and they entered Match Day 7 as the clear favourites to top this section and book a spot at the next World Cup Finals. Rudi Garcia had made a very strong start to his tenure as manager of the Belgian national team, but things look very different after the goalless draw against North Macedonia.
That draw means Belgium are 2nd in this Qualifying Group and a point behind North Macedonia, but also ramps up the pressure ahead of this big away Qualifier. A loss now means Belgium could be in danger of missing out on a top two finish, but the team will be comfortable with any positive result in Cardiff considering they finish off the Group against Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein.
Belgium had a really poor Nations League, which meant a change in the managerial position, and Rudi Garcia helped them retain League A status in that competition with a 4-3 aggregate win over Ukraine in the Play Offs in March. They are unbeaten in 6 games, but the draws with North Macedonia in both Qualifiers have complicated matters. Belgium had not won any of 7 away games played before winning in Liechtenstein, while they have lost 3 of their last 5 on their travels.
Head to Head
A real rivalry has developed between Belgium and Wales and this is the eleventh competitive meeting since September 2012.
Earlier in the Group, Belgium beat Wales 4-3 in Brussels, but they had blown a 3-0 lead and needed an 88th minute winner to secure the points.
Wales are unbeaten in 3 home games against Belgium, although the last 2 hosted by the Welsh have both ended in draws.
Prediction
One of the big concerns that Craig Bellamy has to have is about the slow starts Wales have made to some of their big games over the last few months.
They were 3-0 down in Brussels inside half an hour and England managed to build the same lead in 20 minutes last Thursday. Giving top teams a start like that is very hard to claw back and so Bellamy will be looking for his players to come out with a lot more intensity in this pivotal Qualifier.
Two points separate the top three in this Group and both Wales and Belgium will be expecting North Macedonia to beat Kazakhstan.
It only increases the importance of the three points on offer, even if both of these teams have a game in hand over the Group leaders, and you would suggest that the losing team has something of a mountain to climb if they want to finish in the top two.
This feels especially the case for Wales considering how the remaining fixtures shape up, but they should not be lacking for confidence, despite the loss to England.
Under Craig Bellamy, Wales have really been very good in competitive action and they gave Belgium all they could handle in the 4-3 loss back in June.
Of course they would prefer not to have to fight back from 3-0 down this time and Wales have been pretty solid at home to suggest that will not happen again.
Belgium still have some real quality within the ranks, which makes them dangerous, but this is not a team that have been in the best form for a considerable amount of time. Failure to beat North Macedonia twice in this Group backs that up, while they have been a really poor travelling side for several months.
It wouldn't be a big surprise if Belgium won, and they are odds on to do that, but Wales look worthy of backing with the start on the Asian Handicap.
They have always competed well with Belgium and the away record of the visiting team is poor.
That should play into this fixture and Wales may just keep themselves in control of their own destiny by avoiding a defeat.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Wales 1-1 Belgium
