Copa America 2024: Brazil vs. Costa Rica – Odds, Prediction & Best Bets

The 2024 Copa America begins for the four nations in Group D on Tuesday, June 24, and the contest we’re focusing on is on the highest-rated team in the group, Brazil, and its lowest, Costa Rica. The contest will take place in Los Angeles at the home of the city’s NFL teams, SoFi Stadium, at 9:00PM E.T.

Brazil come into this match on some shaky form, though with the seemingly bottomless pit of elite quality attackers, they could put three or four goals on any team on any given night. Costa Rica, for their part, have looked very steady in the run up to the tournament.

Odds provided by Sports Interaction

Brazil

Brazil is always going to be a danger in any tournament they’re in, but they have not been in their best form for quite some time now. They’ve won just two of their last eight matches, and while most of them were friendlies, it does make you think. They didn’t exactly cover themselves in glory at the 2022 World Cup either. They’ve got immense quality all over the pitch from the sticks to the forwards, but whether they can turn that into success at the Copa remains to be seen.

Team news: No recent major injuries or outstanding suspension risks.

Predicted Lineup: Keeper: Alisson; Defenders: Lucas Beraldo, Marquinhos, Wendell, Danilo; Midfielders: Lucas Paqueta, Joao Gomes, Bruno Guimaraes; Forwards: Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior, Raphinha

Costa Rica

Costa Rica has been to only five Copas, but in their four most recent trips, they’ve won at least one game during the group stages. We’re not saying they’re going to take down the Brazilians, but they aren’t the pushovers oddsmakers are making them out to be. They drew Uruguay recently, they beat Japan in the 2022 World Cup, and they took down the U.S. earlier in 2022. They’re going to make this one interesting.

Team news: No recent major injuries or outstanding suspension risks.

Predicted Lineup: Keeper: Patrick Sequeira; Defenders: Julio Cascante, Francisco Calvo, Jeyland Mitchell; Midfielders: Brandon Aguilera, Orlando Galo, Ariel Lassiter, Gerald Taylor; Forwards: Alvaro Zamora, Manfred Ugalde, Josimar Alcocer

• H2H: Brazil has won the only 5 competitive meetings in the last 50 years
• Brazil trend – Brazil has allowed 1+ goals in 7 of their last 8 matches
• Costa Rica trend – Costa Rica has scored 1+ goals in 8 of their last 10 matches
• Endrick Player trend – Brazil’s young phenom has scored in 3 of his last 4 caps

Despite what the odds might say to you, Costa Rica is certainly capable of getting a result against any nation in the world, they’ve proven that with their performances against sides like Argentina, Uruguay, Japan, and the U.S.A. in the last couple of years.

You’re not likely to see higher odds than the +1,850 ones Costa Rica is getting for this one, which feels a little bit too respectful to Brazil rather than disrespectful to Costa Rica. The central American nation is going to put up a fight here, but the belief in this Brazilian squad is the most baffling part of this considering their recent form.

No one’s doubting their talent, but just two wins their last eight matches leading into the tournament doesn’t exactly imbue one with confidence. They flamed out of the 2022 World Cup as well, and the drama surrounding the team and the manager certainly isn’t helping either. Brazil will win this one, but we wouldn’t be surprised if Costa Rica kept it very close right until the end, or even opened up the scoring.

Both Teams To Score - Yes (+145) | Sports Interaction

It’s always nice when you do your value calculations only to discover that Sports Interaction and many other Ontario sportsbooks are viewing the match very differently you—that means value for you. That is, as long as your value propositions are correct. While it seems like a foregone conclusion that Brazil will emerge victorious here, Costa Rica is always a frisky customer. 

They almost always find a way to get one even if they end up losing by three goals. Brazil, for their part, have proven that their defensive issues persist, giving up a goal in seven of their last eight matches. The +145 odds here make this a tough one to ignore, especially considering that only one of the first four matches of this Copa have seen both teams score, which means we’re due for a positive regression in that arena.