The Highlights
- Germany's Manuel Neuer is the favorite to win the Golden Glove Award for top goalkeeper at the World Cup.
- Spain's David de Gea and Brazil's Alisson Becker are next on the list.
The Golden Glove Award is given to the best goalkeeper at the World Cup. It was initially awarded in 1994 to honor the late Soviet Union goalie Lev Yashin, who played for their national team from 1954-1967 and is regarded as one of the best in history.
Previous winners from 1994-2014 were: Michel Preud'homme, Fabien Barthez, Oliver Kahn, Gianluigi Buffon, Iker Casillas and Manuel Neuer.
The award is not strictly statistical, and takes into account a goalie's performance for the entire competition. Neuer is the favorite to win in 2018 for the second straight World Cup.
Favorites
Manuel Neuer (Germany) — Neuer, one of the best goalies in history, is coming off a foot injury but is expected to start for Germany. If he can't, they have a very viable backup in Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who is in his prime with Barcelona FC. Neuer is a very risky bet here considering he had a serious injury and hasn't played, so you're better off betting Germany to win the World Cup instead.
David de Gea (Spain) — The Manchester United superstar is right behind Neuer at +400 odds to be named the World Cup's best goalkeeper. If Spain makes a deep run in the tournament, he'll undoubtedly be a big part of it.
Alisson Becker (Brazil) — Alisson plays his club football for AS Roma and is high on this list because of the success Brazil is expected to have at the World Cup. There are other goalies with better resumes such as Belgium's Thibaut Courtois, but the overall team aspect comes into play here.
Hugo Lloris (France) — The Tottenham man comes in at fourth on the list at +700, same as France's odds to win the World Cup. He is the clear No. 1 for France and will have to make some key saves for France to progress deep in the tournament.
Thibaut Courtois (Belgium) — Courtois is another Premier League goalkeeper (Chelsea) on the list coming in at +1000, right around Belgium's odds to win the World Cup. Belgium likes to play with three defenders in the back, so stellar goalkeeping will be crucial.
32 Team Betting Breakdowns
- Group A: Russia | Saudi Arabia | Egypt | Uruguay
- Group B: Portugal | Morocco | Iran | Spain
- Group C: France | Australia | Peru | Denmark
- Group D: Argentina | Iceland | Croatia | Nigeria
- Group E: Brazil | Costa Rica | Switzerland | Serbia
- Group F: Germany | Mexico | Sweden | South Korea
- Group G: Belgium | Panama | Tunisia | England
- Group H: Poland | Senegal | Colombia | Japan
