Brazil vs. Ecuador: Betting Odds Preview, Copa America Prediction

Ecuador aims for their first victory of the year in international play as they take on Group B favorite Brazil as big +335 Copa America underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. The Brazilians are pegged as heavy -115 favorites as they look to extend their unbeaten streak against Ecuador to seven games.

Match Odds: Brazil -115, Ecuador +335, Draw +245 (Matchup Report)

Ecuador enters the Copa America Centenario at No. 13 on the FIFA World Rankings. However, they have struggled in international matches this year, dropping decisions to Colombia and the United States and settling for draws in matches against Paraguay and the Los Angeles Galaxy of the MLS.

La Tri has mustered only one goal in its last three and will sorely miss striker Felipe Caicedo, who leads the squad with four goals in four FIFA World Cup qualification matches. Caicedo will sit out a second-straight Copa America as he recovers from a hamstring injury.

That's bad news for an Ecuadorian side looking to bounce back from a dismal showing at last year's tournament, where they meekly bowed out in the group stage for the sixth time in a row following stunning losses to Chile and Bolivia.

Despite Ecuador's poor recent track record at the Copa America and dismal record in head-to-head matchups against Brazil, they maintain strong +225 odds to finish at the top of the Group B table and sit squarely in the middle of the pack on the Copa America tournament odds—pegged at +2500 to claim their first championship at the event.

No. 7 Brazil settled for quarterfinal finishes in each of their past two Copa America appearances, but a fortuitous draw grouped them with tournament long shots Peru and Haiti and has made them the strongest group stage favorite of the tournament with short -225 odds of finishing first in Group B.

The Selecao have dominated Ecuador over the past decade, claiming victory in five of six meetings, including a decisive 4-2 victory in their last tournament matchup during the group stage at the 2011 Copa America.

But the eight-time Copa America champions have faced their own struggles with inconsistency. They posted recent clean sheet wins over lightweights Panama, Peru and Venezuela, but struggled against tougher competition, going 0-3-1 in three recent dates against Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina and Chile.

Brazil vs. Ecuador Prediction: Brazil 2-0