There is plenty of excitement surrounding this year’s Champions League. After a World Cup, soccer always gets a bit of a bump in terms of viewership, and plenty of new soccer fans are now looking for teams to support. Clubs know that Champions League success leads to prestige, international recognition, and a boatload of cash, and many of the top teams in Europe spent lavishly this offseason in order to try to win the Champions League.
Everyone is chasing Real Madrid at the moment. Although the Spanish heavyweights aren’t the pre-tournament favorite, they have won four of the last five Champions League crowns and are the team to beat until they are eliminated. Thirty-one other teams will be vying to take their place as kings of Europe.
Champions League Betting Odds at BookMaker.eu
Manchester City +450
Barcelona +600
Juventus +650
Paris Saint-Germain +800
Bayern Munich +900
Real Madrid +900
Liverpool +1200
Atletico Madrid +1200
Tottenham Hotspur +2500
Manchester United +3050
Napoli +5500
Inter Milan +6500
AS Roma +6550
Borussia Dortmund +8050
Benfica +10500
Monaco +12500
Porto +12500
Porto +12500
Valencia +15000
1899 Hoffenheim +17500
Shakhtar Donetsk +17500
Olympique Lyon +22500
Ajax +25000
CSKA Moscow +30000
Schalke 04 +32500
Galatasaray +40000
Lokomotiv Moscow +47500
PSV Eindhoven +50000
AEK Athens +50000
Young Boys +100000
Club Brugge +100000
Viktoria Plzen +200000
Red Star Belgrade +200000
The Contenders
After the groups were announced last week, the odds to win the Champions League shifted slightly as bettors jumped on teams that had more favorable draws than others.
Chief among those is Manchester City. Manchester City might have more depth than any other club in the world and they crushed records on their way to winning the Premier League last season. They brought back the entire core of last year’s team and even added Riyad Mahrez to give the team another playmaker. Anything other than first place in a group with Olympique Lyon, 1899 Hoffenheim, and Shakhtar Donetsk would be a major surprise.
Barcelona have a bit of a tougher draw, but people are always going to back Lionel Messi. The Blaugrana may have found a third forward in youngster Ousmane Dembele too, making it tougher to close down on Messi and Luis Suarez. Barca have been placed in a group with Tottenham, Inter Milan, and PSV Eindhoven, and that could be a bit difficult. First place isn’t guaranteed in a group with Spurs and Inter, but they should make the knockout stages.
There is bound to be a lot of action on Juventus over the course of this competition. The Italian giants made a huge splash by acquiring Cristiano Ronaldo this offseason, and they added a number of other complementary pieces with the aim of finally winning the Champions League after so many near-misses. This is the first time in almost two decades Juventus are without Gianluigi Buffon though, and they will be hoping that Wojciech Szczesny can fill those shoes. They are in a relatively easy group with Manchester United, Valencia, and Young Boys, and they should finish atop that foursome with room to spare.
Next in line
Is this the year Paris Saint-Germain finally break through and at least make it past the quarterfinals? The owners have spent gobs of money on this team over the years, but they have yet to make a splash. Kylian Mbappe and Neymar have scored heaps of goals in domestic play, but Champions League glory has eluded them to this point. They have once again been given a difficult draw, needing to get past Liverpool and Napoli in their group.
Bayern Munich might have the easiest draw of anyone, and that is likely why the odds on the German powerhouse have dropped. Bayern didn’t make any big moves this offseason, and they arguably got worse by letting Arturo Vidal go to Barcelona. However, they will have no problem topping a group that includes AEK Athens, Ajax, and Benfica.
UEFA Champions League Odds
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