Intertops.com has put South Africa at 1/10 to win the race to host the first World Cup in Africa.
Five other African countries have entered bids to host the event - Libya, Nigeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt.
Morocco (5/2) is next in line ahead of Tunisia (8/1) and Egypt (15/1).
Intertops' outsiders are Nigeria (50/1) and Libya (100/1).
At the other end of the thermal spectrum is an ice-cold three-way duel to host the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Here the competition is much tighter with Salzburg (evens) just edging out Vancouver (5/4). The long shot is the Korean bid from Pyeongchang County (3/1).
Said Intertops.com chief bet manager Michael Maerz: "A lot of things could happen in the next few months to dramatically change these odds.
"Here at Intertops.com, we can't really imagine Colonel Mu'ammar Gaddafi presiding over the opening ceremony at the 2010 World Cup, which is why Libya is definitely the long shot.
"Intertops.com originated from Austria, which is probably why we have slightly favoured Salzburg over Vancouver to host the 2010 Winter Olympics. Korea hosted the recent World Cup, which may also bias the Olympic committee."
