FIFA World Cup Betting: Once a proud soccer nation, Uruguay really hasn't had a huge impact on World Cup betting action in several decades. However, this year could be different for the fifth qualifying South American squad, as there is plenty of reason hope for Los Charruas to succeed in South Africa.

Uruguay had plenty of chances to become an automatic qualifier for the World Cup, but a loss to Argentina in the final stage of qualification put it in a huge hole. The Uruguayans needed to take Costa Rica out in a home-and-home playoff to play their way into this field of 32 teams. It was the second time that Uruguay qualified for the World Cup in 20 years (with 2002 being its only other appearance in that stretch).

Any time you can say that you have a player on your team that helped knock off arguably the best club side in the entire world, you have a chance. Uruguay has F Diego Forlan, who scored 18 goals in Spanish Primera League action this year for Atletico Madrid. It was a disappointing season for Atletico, but winning at home against Barcelona was the highlight of the season.

Uruguay hasn't won a game in this tournament since 1990 in Italy, which makes it a hard subject for World Cup picks. A group that features France, South Africa, and Mexico is manageable, though one must know that it would be just as easy for this team to end up with no points from three matches as it would be to end up with six or seven. There's a reason that Los Charruas are +600 to win Group A and +10000 to win the World Cup.