Rugby World Cup Final: Bettors confident England will beat South Africa

After Saturday's semi-final win, the build-up to this weekend's final between England and South Africa begins with Max Liu's guide to the important betting markets...

England are 1.57 favourites on the Exchange to win the Rugby World Cup for the second time in their history when they play South Africa 3.00 in Saturday's final.

England are 4/1 to start with a try again

Eddie Jones' men stormed into the final when they beat New Zealand 19-7 in the semi-final with one of the most sensational performances in Rugby World Cup history. After fronting up to the Haka, the Red Rose stunned their opponents with Manu Tuilagi scoring a try after two minutes.

An England try is 4.80 in the final's first scoring play market.

The Springboks, meanwhile, overcame Wales 19-16 in a dramatic semi-final on Sunday.

It is the first time either side has reached the final since they met in France in 2007, when South Africa won 15-6.

England odds-on to cover handicap and 50/50 to win both halves

England's sole Rugby World Cup win came in 2003 when they beat Australia 20-17 after extra-time, thanks to Jonny Wilkinson's iconic last minute drop goal. But this time bettors believe the Red Rose will be more comfortable.

They are backing captain Owen Farrell and his teammates to win by a bigger margin this time, with England 1.90 to cover a -4.5 point handicap, and South Africa +4.5 available at 2.08.

If you think Jones's men will be dominant throughout then you can back England/England at 2.12 in the half-time/full-time market.

South Africa have already lost one match at this world cup, against New Zealand in their opening group game, whereas England have a 100% record (although their cancelled group match against France was deemed a draw). No team has ever won the world cup after losing match in the group stage.

England and South Africa have played each other four times in the past 18 months with the teams winning two matches each. When they met on 3 November 2018 - almost exactly a year to the day from Saturday's final - England edged it 12-11 at Twickenham.

Saffers were backed at 19/1 for world cup glory

Will the final be higher scoring contest than that match a year ago? England's over/under mark is set at 20.5 points - a line they crossed in all of their matches at this world cup apart from their semi-final victory over New Zealand.

England came into the tournament as second favourites behind defending champions the All Blacks, although Jones's men have traded as high as 11.00 for world cup glory in 2020.

South Africa were also considered leading contenders, thanks to the way they have improved over coach Rassie Erasmus in the past 12 months, and if they upset the final odds then it should be big pay day for whoever backed them at the high of 20.00 in the outright winner market.