These are our top free tips for the 2024/25 Champions League. Keep an eye on the odds, which are always subject to change.
Champions League 2024/25 predictions: League Stage
Real Madrid vs Dortmund: Real Madrid to win (-1 handicap) @ 11/10 (2.10)
It’s only been a few months since these two sides faced off in last season’s Champions League final. Now they meet again. Real Madrid won that final 2-0 and we think they’ll win by at least that margin again here as we back them to win with a -1 handicap applied. Real, despite noise of their poor form, have won every match (5) played at the Bernabeu this season with four of those coming by winning margins of more than one goal. Dortmund meanwhile have lost their last two away games whilst conceding seven goals.Brest vs Leverkusen: Leverkusen & BTTS @ 15/8 (2.88)
Brest and Leverkusen both have 100% records in this competition so far and, as such, it’s only fair their encounter features in our Champions League betting preview ahead of game week three. Someone’s perfect record has to go and we think it’s Brest who will lose out here as we back Xabi Alonso’s side for the win. The longer term form guide clearly sits in their favour with Leverkusen losing only one of their past 10 compared to Brest who have lost five of 10 whilst winning only four in that period. With all of that being said though, Brest are sitting pretty after two games and, being at home as well, we fancy them to bag at least one consolation goal.Barcelona vs Bayern Munich: Over 3.5 goals @ 1/1 (2.00)
We were told the new look Champions League would deliver big games earlier on in the competition and Barcelona vs Bayern Munich certainly serves as proof of that. It’s not just a big game by team name though; it’s also notable that both sides have now lost one of the two games they’ve played in the competition. We’re steering clear of the match result bet here though instead backing over 3.5 goals. Both sides have gone north of the 3.5 goal threshold in three of their respective last five games. Don’t forget, these two served up the famous 8–2 game not all that long ago as well! We also have daily betting tips for many other leagues all around the world. You can check them out in our article on football betting tips today.Champions League Tips – Outright Predictions
Let’s now explore which teams could well win the Champions League this season. As you are aware, there are many contenders who could make it through to the final and lift the trophy, but we do have a few teams to direct you towards before you make any outright wagers. Whatever the outcome, you’ll want to make sure you take a gander at the bet365 bonus code and the William Hill sign up promo code.Man City @ 11/4 (3.75)
You can’t really read too much into the early games of the Champions League and, instead, focus will still be put on the quality of squad and previous achievements to determine the winners. City rank top of the bookies list of potential winners largely owing to Pep Guardiola. Their price has drifted a little since Rodri picked up what is seemingly a season ending injury though.Real Madrid @ 10/3 (4.33)
Real Madrid and the Champions League go together like bacon and eggs – or whatever well-loved paring springs to mind – hence the holders again feature amongst the early favourites. They’ve not been firing this season though and have already suffered defeat in the new league stage. You’d expect them to grow into the competition.Arsenal @ 8/1 (9.00)
It’s a big odds jump from second to third favourites with Arsenal in at 8/1 (9.00) but, again, you can sort of understand the reason why Arsenal rank highly in the bookmakers thoughts. They’ve been going head to head with Man City on a domestic front for two and a bit seasons and don’t give much away defensively, which always gives you a chance in what is still predominantly a knockout competition. *Odds provided by bet365 and will be subject to change.Popular Betting Markets on the Champions League
Top Goalscorer Odds
‘Who will be the top goalscorer?’ is a widely popular question when it comes to Champions League predictions. The likely contenders for the prize are detailed below but make sure to check back soon as this will be updated with odds as the competition starts to take shape for 2024/25.- Kylian Mbappe
- Harry Kane
- Erling Haaland
Penalty Shootout
This is a very cool market for wagering on, especially in the knockout stage. You can bet on whether or not there will be a penalty shootout. This will excite you plenty if other markets seem dull to you.Name the Finalists
Bookies released this market and the options for those punters who think they can name both of the finalists who will play in showpiece game. If you dare to make an assumption, you can get some competitive odds on certain bookies.To Reach the Final
If you are sure that a specific team would reach the final but aren’t sure whether they would win, this market is perfect. If the odds satisfy you, then go ahead and place the wager.To finish in the Top 4
The semi-finals are less than a month away, and punters are going crazy guessing who will finish in the top four teams in this year’s Champions League. If you can’t find this wager on your favourite bookmaker platform, you can request it if they have the feature available.
Champions League – Unique Special Markets
Like any football tournament, bookies love releasing Special markets to their customers. Thanks to them, punters relax and do something different than the regular outright or BTTS markets. As expected, some bookmakers offer unique Special markets for the Champions League this year. Some of them are described below.Accumulators (ACCAs)
Accumulators are prevalent types of wagers with high payout potential. The trick is that you have to guess right all selections on your bet slip to get the reward from the combined odds. You can place them on multiple matches of the Champions League, and the best part is that you don’t have to stake a large sum to win big.Freekick Score
This market is unusual, and you probably won’t find it anywhere, but if you know that a specific player is very capable of performing freekicks, then why not bet on it? You can request a wager via the bookie’s request a bet feature and see what kind of odds they would offer you.Player Assist
Another Special market to think about is to wager on whether a specific player would have an assist during the game. This market is mostly reserved for individual matches, and not outrights.Winner Nationality/Top Goalscorer Nationality
The nationality markets aren’t directly related to the game, so they are considered specials, even if bookies put them in the outrights category. You will have to guess the nationality of the winning team or the top goalscorer. Again, if you don’t find these bets, you can always request them.Champions League Schedule
The Champions League Format
It doesn’t feel like it was that long ago that we saw Real Madrid once again triumph in Europe’s biggest club competition but it soon started up again with qualification for the 2025 tournament having started on July 9th. The draw for the main tournament was then held on 29th August and now we have a very different competition awaiting us. The new format sees the four team groups we’ve become accustomed to abandoned. Now we’ll see all qualified teams divided into four pots based on their seeding. Two teams from each seeding pot will then be drawn and assigned to an eight team league. The teams will all play against one another but won’t have the traditional home and away fixtures. Instead, each team will have a bit of a lottery as to which team they’ll face at home and which they’ll face away although that will be limited to facing one team from each seeding pot at home and the other away i.e. a team from seeding pot A has to play one game against each team from seeding pot B in their league, however, one of those teams will be faced at home and the other away. After the league stage, a straight knockout competition unfolds.Road to the Final
As we’ve already touched on, Champions League qualification started on July 9th with the draw for the league stage coming on August 29th meaning we know who sits in what pot for the new look groups. On September 17th, the league stage gets underway with eight matchday weeks then running a couple of weeks apart; this stretches through until the final league matchday on January when all the final league stage matches will be played for a blockbuster day of football. The knockout rounds start on February 11th with the second legs played a week later. March sees the Round of 16 completed before April brings us the two-legged quarter-finals on the 8th, 9th, 15th and 16th and the semi-final first legs, which are due to be played on the last couple of days of the month. The second legs of the semi-finals are due the first week of May before the much anticipated final on May 31st 2025.Champions League final: 31st May 2025
The 2025 Champions League will take place on May 31st 2025 and will be hosted in Germany at Bayern Munich’s 70,000 capacity Allianz Arena. The Allianz Arena, which has a striking design as dreamed up by architects Herzog & de Meuron, previously held the Champions League’s showpiece game back in 2011/12, which saw Chelsea beat Bayern on penalties. It has also played host to games during the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2020 and 2024 respectively meaning it’s no stranger to big matches.Champions League Betting – Frequently Asked Questions
How often are your UCL predictions updated?
We provide a match prediction for every game in the Champions League, from the group stage through to the final. On this page you’ll find selected best bets, and can click through to a more detailed preview of any game.What events does the Champions League consist of?
The UEFA Champions League begins with qualifiers very early in the season and eventually leads to the league stage which is followed by two-legged knockout ties all the way through to the final which is decided within 90-minutes, extra-time or penalties.Will bookmakers release Champions League-specific bonuses this year?
We think that most established bookmakers would give bonuses related to the Champions League to their customers.Where will the Champions League final be held?
The location of the final is the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.Who will win the Champions League in 2025?
The bookmaker odds have the usual suspects leading the way with the likes of Man City and Real Madrid likely to attract big money from punters.Is betting on the Champions League legal outside of Europe?
Betting on the Champions League is legal from anywhere as long as it’s done via a legal and licensed bookmaker or online platform.Who won the Champions League in recent years?
Here’s a breakdown of the last six Champions League winning teams:- 2024: Real Madrid
- 2023: Man City
- 2022: Real Madrid
- 2021: Chelsea
- 2020: Bayern Munich
- 2019: Liverpool
- 2018: Real Madrid
