Published 25 September 2026. Analysis and predictions are our opinion,
not a guarantee of anything. 18+, please gamble responsibly.
Wales are back in action at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen on Sunday 27 September, kick-off 17:00 UK time, and both sides arrive having lost their Group A4 openers on 24 September. Craig Bellamy’s side went down 1-0 in Lisbon, where João Félix’s 22nd-minute shot deflected in off Ben Davies and Portugal finished with 22 shots to Wales’s five. Denmark lost 3-2 in Norway, with Erling Haaland scoring twice and Mikkel Damsgaard and Rasmus Højlund replying. Neither side can afford a second defeat in a four-team group with Portugal and Norway in it.
The team news is a concern for Wales before a ball is kicked. First-choice centre-back Joe Rodon is out with a hamstring injury, and Dylan Lawlor has yet to feature this season because of a knee problem, leaving Bellamy short at the heart of defence against a Denmark side with genuine attacking quality. There is better news further forward: Harry Wilson and Jordan James both return to the squad having missed June’s friendlies, and uncapped forward Cian Ashford gets his first senior call-up despite his own injury concerns this season.
The case for Denmark
Brian Riemer’s side reached last season’s Nations League quarter-finals before a 5-3 aggregate defeat to Portugal, the same Portugal side that beat Wales on Wednesday. The squad has real attacking depth: Rasmus Hojlund and Kasper Dolberg up front, Christian Eriksen still pulling strings in midfield alongside Morten Hjulmand and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. A Wales side missing its first-choice centre-back pairing is exactly the kind of opponent that squad is built to punish.
The case for Wales
Bellamy’s attacking options are stronger than his defensive ones this window, and Wilson and James returning gives him more to work with going forward than a patched-up back line might suggest. Wales have made a habit of organising well defensively even with changed personnel, and a well-drilled away performance that keeps things tight can still nick a result against a Denmark side that, for all its individual quality, has its own defensive questions.
What looks the smart angle
The market has moved hard towards Denmark since Wednesday’s results. Betfred’s 1/2 (1.50) is the best partner price on the hosts, with William Hill at 1.44 and Virgin Bet at 2/5 (1.40). Wales have drifted to 11/2 (6.50) at Betfred, ahead of Virgin Bet’s 27/5 (6.40) and William Hill’s 5/1 (6.00), and Virgin Bet’s 33/10 (4.30) is the best partner price on the draw. Wales’s display in Lisbon and their centre-back problems make Denmark fair favourites, though Denmark conceded three in Norway and their own defence is not watertight. Wales at 11/2 with Betfred, or the draw at 33/10 with Virgin Bet, both look like they pay more than the gap between the sides really justifies, given Wales still have enough going forward to trouble a Denmark defence that is not flawless itself. This is opinion and analysis on the prices as they stand, not a certainty, and Wales’s back-line selection is worth a final check before kick-off given how threadbare it currently looks.
Elsewhere this week
Portugal travel to Norway later the same evening in the other Group A4 fixture, while England’s own Nations League window continues with home advantage against Spain on 26 September. Newmarket’s Cheveley Park and Middle Park Stakes headline a huge Group 1 card the same Saturday, and King’s Resort in Rozvadov runs its King’s Million EPC poker festival through the same stretch.
The offers worth claiming before kick-off
Ad: Betfred’s bet £10, get £50 in free bets carries the best partner price on both Denmark and Wales, though the qualifying bet needs odds of Evens (2.0) or bigger, so Denmark at 1/2 would not qualify and Wales or the draw would. Virgin Bet’s welcome offer has the best partner price on the draw and pays £20 in free bets plus 2 x £5 Bet Builder tokens for a £10 deposit and a £10+ bet at 1/2 or better. William Hill’s bet £10, get £30 in free bets has the lowest qualifying-odds bar of the three at 1/2 (1.5).
Virgin Bet also runs two live casino welcome offers worth checking while you’re there: 100 free spins on Eye of Horus and a separate 100 free spins on King Kong Cash Even Bigger Bananas 2, both for a £10 deposit and stake, winnings paid out as cash with no wagering.
Whichever way Copenhagen goes, claim the Betfred welcome offer here to back it at this week’s best price.
