Belgium start their 2026 World Cup Qualifying campaign with a trip to North Macedonia on Friday evening.
Rudi Garcia is looking to continue his mixed start to life as Red Devils manager, with a spot at next year’s summer tournament an absolute must.
Read on as betFIRST previews the intriguing fixture, complete with some betting tips featuring the latest football odds from our website and app.
And if your bet on North Macedonia vs Belgium is coming in with time still left to play in the match, remember you can use our Cash Out feature to collect potential winnings before the full-time whistle is blown by the referee.
North Macedonia vs Belgium Preview
Although technically labelled as Matchday 3, this is actually Belgium’s first 2026 World Cup Qualifier, as they had to partake in the Nations League Play-Offs.
And Garcia’s side avoided relegation by defeating Ukraine 4-3 on aggregate, claiming a 3-0 home win after losing the first leg 3-1.
In the group stage of the Nations League with Domenico Tedesco in charge, Belgium were poor at best, losing four of their matches and claiming just one win over Israel.
So it is down to veteran manager Garcia to inspire positive change in the Red Devils camp, which places even more importance on this fixture.
North Macedonia enjoyed a brilliant Nations League campaign in League C, finishing top of Group 4 with five wins from six.
And their 2026 World Cup Qualifying campaign has got off to a decent start, with a 3-0 win in Liechtenstein followed by a deserved 1-1 draw with Wales.
So while on paper this looks like a routine win for the Belgians, it may prove to be a tricky fixture.
But with record scorer Romelu Lukaku fresh from guiding Napoli to Serie A glory, Belgium should still feel confident of eventually claiming the victory.
North Macedonia vs Belgium Odds
*All odds are subject to change
North Macedonia are huge underdogs here at 8.50. Belgium are priced at 1.38 to claim the win, while the draw is 4.50.
North Macedonia vs Belgium Betting Tips
Over 2.5 goals in the match @ 2.00
Belgium’s last two fixtures against Ukraine saw over 2.5 goals scored in each of them, which makes this selection really appealing to us. If Garcia’s men score early in North Macedonia, the floodgates could very well open thanks to the attacking talent in the squad. Furthermore, the hosts are more than capable of scoring one or two goals themselves.
Both teams to score – Yes @ 2.20
As previously mentioned, North Macedonia can trouble the Belgian defence and they have scored at least one goal in each of their last nine matches across all competitions. So the BTTS market here could be a great way to more-than double your money!
Winner first half – Belgium @ 1.86
But while we have bigged up North Macedonia to some degree, Belgium should still win this match comfortably. And if you want to find better value in that outcome, Garcia’s men to win the opening 45 minutes of play could be the avenue to go down.
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