UEFA Champions League betting sites

Contested each year between the top football teams from all over Europe, the UEFA Champions League is one of the biggest gambling events in world sport. Find out which betting sites offer the best odds and betting specials for the most prestigious trophy in club football. UEFA Champions League betting sites offer odds all-year round, including on the winner, to pass the group stage and on all matches in the event. Wagering on UEFA Champions League online can be done via the following betting sites:

UEFA Champions League Bookies

#1	Live Betting Odds Bovada Claim a 50% deposit bonus up to the value of USD $250	Visit Bovada Bovada Review

What is the UEFA Champions League?

The European Cup was first contested during the 1955-56 domestic season. It was a straight knockout competition between 16 teams, most of which were reigning champions of their respective top-flight leagues. Real Madrid claimed top honours that year in the first of five consecutive titles.

It was not long before the European Cup evolved into a highly competitive tournament of champions. Madrid’s early success set a high mark that top teams from the rest of Europe were determine to match. By the end of the 1980s, the winners’ list featured multiple entries from the likes of Benfica, Milan, Internazionale, Ajax, Bayern Munich and Liverpool.

The tournament has grown considerably in the past few decades. The ‘Champions League’ branding was adopted after a group stage was introduced in 1992; a few years later, the qualification rules were loosened to allow multiple entrants from each nation. The result is a star-studded competition that ranks second only to the FIFA World Cup in prestige.

Key Champions League dates 2024

The Champions League is one of the most hotly contested titles in world soccer, with it roughly running from February to August each year. The key Champions League dates for 2024 are:

2023/24 Champions League qualifying matches

• Preliminary round semi-finals: 27 June 2023
• Preliminary round final: 30 June 2023
• First qualifying round: 11/12 and 18/19 July 2023
• Second qualifying round: 25/26 July and 1/2 August 2023
• Third qualifying round: 8/9 and 15 August 2023
• Play-offs: 22/23 and 29/30 August 2023

2023/24 Champions League group stage match dates

• Matchday 1: 19/20 September 2023
• Matchday 2: 3/4 October 2023
• Matchday 3: 24/25 October 2023
• Matchday 4: 7/8 November 2023
• Matchday 5: 28/29 November 2023
• Matchday 6: 12/13 December 2023

2023/24 knockout stages of the Champions League

• Round of 16: 13/14/20/21 February and 5/6/12/13 March 2024
• Quarter-finals: 9/10 and 16/17 April 2024
• Semi-finals: 30 April/1 May and 7/8 May 2024
• Final: 1 June 2024

2023/24 Champions League draw dates

• Preliminary round: 13 June 2023
• First qualifying round: 20 June 2023
• Second qualifying round: 21 June 2023
• Third qualifying round: 24 July 2023
• Play-off round: 7 August 2023
• Group stage: 31 August 2023
• Round of 16: 18 December 2023
• Quarter-finals & semi-finals: 15 March 2024

Best UEFA Champions League betting sites

Thousands of sports betting operators take bets on Champions League football, but some are better than others. Furthermore, licensing restrictions mean some bookies may not be accessible in certain parts of the world. The sites below are licensed, secure and open to gamblers in United States.

Best soccer bookmakers

#1	Live Betting Odds Bovada Claim a 50% deposit bonus up to the value of USD $250	Visit Bovada Bovada Review

How to bet on Champions League football

There are literally hundreds of ways to have a bet on the Champions League. Open the tabs below to learn more.

• Match betting
  Every Champions League match comes with three standard bets: you can back either team to win outright, or you can bet that the game will end in a draw. That’s all there is to it.
  
• Handicap betting
  Betting handicaps even up the odds when one team is heavily favoured to beat the other. For example, let’s say Liverpool are pegged at +100 odds on a -2.0 handicap; for the bet to pay, the Reds must win by at least three goals.
  
• Correct score betting
  These markets offer excellent returns, but they are very tricky to pick. For instance, if Barcelona are paying +500 to win 3-0, the bet only returns if the Blaugrana triumph by exactly three goals to nil and not any other scoreline.
  
• Goalscorer betting
  UCL bookies do a massive trade in goalscorer predictions. You can back any player to score the first goal, the last goal, two or more goals, with their head, from outside the box – the options are all but endless.
  
• Match doubles
  Soccer bookmakers often tie multiple bets together and advertise them at special odds. For example, a double on the first goalscorer and the match result will pay more than if you had wagered on those two markets separately.
  
• Exotic markets
  You can bet on just about every aspect of a Champions League match. There are markets for corners and throw-ins, yellow and red cards, penalties, own goals, clean sheets, margins – the list goes on.
  
• Futures & outrights
  Champions League outright markets are available well in advance of the tournament’s commencement. You can bet on the title winner, the top teams in each group, and player props such as top goalscorer and most clean sheets.
  

Champions League format and qualification

The final field for the European Cup has doubled in size since the 1990s, while the qualifying route has also undergone some significant changes. Tap the tabs below to find out more.

• Qualification
  The annual tournament features 32 teams that qualify based on their domestic achievements the previous season. The stronger leagues are awarded multiple entries, while the champions of lesser competitions must navigate additional qualification rounds.

  For example, let’s compare the highest divisions of England and Scotland. The top three teams in the English Premier League automatically qualify for the Champions League group stage, while the fourth-placed team enters a playoff. By contrast, the Scottish champions must win through two rounds of qualifying and a playoff tie to reach the final 32.
  

• Group stage
  Once the teams are confirmed, they are then sorted into eight groups of four. The draw is not completely random, as clubs are seeded in different ‘pots’ according to their UEFA ranking. Groups consist of one team from each pot, with the aim of separating clubs from the same country and ensuring an even balance of quality from group to group.

  The tournament proper commences in September, with matchdays conducted midweek to avoid clashes with domestic league fixtures. The group stage is played as a double round-robin, meaning every team plays each other twice (once home, once away). The top two teams in each group progress to the knockout phase, the third-placed teams move to the Europa League and the last-placed sides are eliminated altogether.
  

• Knockout phase
  There are three stages of the knockout phase: the round of 16, the quarter-finals and the semi-finals. In each, the remaining teams are paired up in a random draw and pitted in a two-legged playoff. Whichever team wins on aggregate progresses to the next phase, while the other is eliminated.

  If the tie is deadlocked after two legs, the win is awarded to whichever team scores more goals away from home. If that does not settle it, then added extra time and a penalty shootout may be required.
  

• The final
  The last two teams standing compete in a one-off final at a predetermined venue. This is one of the most-watched sporting events of the year, especially when staged at iconic stadiums such as Camp Nou, the Santiago Bernabeu, San Siro, or Wembley.

  The winners are crowned champions of Europe, but that’s not all. They also earn automatic qualification for the following Champions League campaign and a spot in the annual FIFA Club World Cup tournament, which European teams have dominated since its revival in 2005.
  

Champions League records and stats

The cream always rises to the top in the UEFA Champions League. Open the tabs below to find out which powerhouse clubs and star players have shone brightest on the big stage.

• Champions League winners
  Real Madrid dominated the early years of the European Cup, winning every final between 1956 and 1960. AC Milan, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Liverpool are the only other teams to win it five times or more.

  1956	Real Madrid 4-3 Stade de Reims
  1957	Real Madrid 2-0 Fiorentina
  1958	Real Madrid 3-2* Milan
  1959	Real Madrid 2-0 Stade de Reims
  1960	Real Madrid 7-3 Eintracht Frankfurt
  1961	Benfica 3-2 Barcelona
  1962	Benfica 5-3 Real Madrid
  1963	Milan 2-1 Benfica
  1964	Internazionale 3-1 Real Madrid
  1965	Internazionale 1-0 Benfica
  1966	Real Madrid 2-1 Partizan
  1967	Celtic 2-1 Internazionale
  1968	Manchester United 4-1* Benfica
  1969	Milan 4-1 Ajax
  1970	Feyenoord 2-1* Celtic
  1971	Ajax 2-0 Panathinaikos
  1972	Ajax 2-0 Internazionale
  1973	Ajax 1-0 Juventus
  1974	Bayern Munich 4-0^ Atletico Madrid
  1975	Bayern Munich 2-0 Leeds United
  1976	Bayern Munich 1-0 Saint Etienne
  1977	Liverpool 3-1 Borussia Monchengladbach
  1978	Liverpool 1-0 Club Brugge
  1979	Nottingham Forest 1-0 Malmo FF
  1980	Nottingham Forest 1-0 Hamburg
  1981	Liverpool 1-0 Real Madrid
  1982	Aston Villa 1-0 Bayern Munich
  1983	Hamburg 1-0 Juventus
  1984	Liverpool 1-1** Roma
  1985	Juventus 1-0 Liverpool
  1986	Steaua Bucharest 0-0** Barcelona
  1987	Porto 2-1 Bayern Munich
  1988	PSV Eindhoven 0-0** Benfica
  1989	Milan 4-0 Steaua Bucharest
  1990	Milan 1-0 Benfica
  1991	Red Star Belgrade 0-0** Marseille
  1992	Barcelona 1-0* Sampdoria
  1993	Marseille 1-0 Milan
  1994	Milan 4-0 Barcelona
  1995	Ajax 1-0 Milan
  1996	Juventus 1-1** Ajax
  1997	Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Milan
  1998	Real Madrid 1-0 Juventus
  1999	Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich
  2000	Real Madrid 3-0 Valencia
  2001	Bayern Munich 1-1** Valencia
  2002	Real Madrid 2-1 Bayer Leverkusen
  2003	Milan 0-0** Juventus
  2004	Porto 3-0 Monaco
  2005	Liverpool 3-3** Milan
  2006	Barcelona 2-1 Arsenal
  2007	Milan 2-1 Liverpool
  2008	Manchester United 1-1** Chelsea
  2009	Barcelona 2-0 Manchester United
  2010	Internazionale 2-1 Bayern Munich
  2011	Barcelona 3-1 Manchester United
  2012	Chelsea 1-1** Bayern Munich
  2013	Bayern Munich 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
  2014	Real Madrid 4-1* Atletico Madrid
  2015	Barcelona 3-1 Juventus
  2016	Real Madrid 1-1** Atletico Madrid
  2017	Real Madrid 4-1 Juventus

  * Added extra time
  ** Penalties
  ^ Replay

• Most Champions League goals
  When it comes to Champions League goals, two players stand head and shoulders above all others. Cristiano Ronaldo leads the way with more than 120 goals for Manchester United and Real Madrid, while Lionel Messi has also reached triple figures at Barcelona.

  Cristiano Ronaldo	120 goals, 150 games (2003-)
  Lionel Messi	100 goals, 125 games (2005-)
  Raul	71 goals, 142 games (1995-2011)
  Ruud van Nistelrooy	56 goals, 73 games (1998-2009)
  Karim Benzema	53 goals, 101 games (2006-)
  Thierry Henry	50 goals, 112 games (1997-2012)
  Alfredo di Stefano	49 goals, 58 games (1955-1964)
  Andriy Schevchenko	48 goals, 100 games (1994-2012)
  Zlatan Ibrahimovic	48 goals, 120 games (2001-2018)
  Eusebio	47 goals, 63 games (1961-1974)

• Most Champions League appearances
  The all-time appearance list is dominated by players from Barcelona and Real Madrid. Of the top 10, only Ryan Giggs never played for a Spanish club.

  Iker Casillas	167 games (1999-)
  Xavi	151 games (1998-2015)
  Cristiano Ronaldo	150 games (2003-)
  Raul	142 games (1995-2011)
  Ryan Giggs	141 games (1993-2014)
  Andres Iniesta	130 games (2002-)
  Lionel Messi	125 games (2005-)
  Clarence Seedorf	125 games (1994-2012)
  Paul Scholes	124 games (1994-2013)
  Roberto Carlos	120 games (1997-2007)
  Zlatan Ibrahimovic	120 games (2001-2018)

• More player records
  
  Want some more facts and figures? Here are some of our favourites:

  • Francisco Gento won the European Cup six times with Real Madrid between 1955 and 1966.
  • Gento and Milan legend Paolo Maldini are the only two players to have featured in eight finals.
  • Clarence Seedorf won the UCL title with three different teams: Ajax in 1995, Real Madrid in 1998, and Milan in 2003 and 2007.
  • Samuel Eto’o won the treble with Barcelona in 2009 and did it again the following season at Inter.
  • Edgar Davids and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were each sent off four times in Champions League matches.
  • Zlatan is also the only man to play in the UCL with seven different clubs: Ajax, Juventus, Inter, Barcelona, Milan, Paris-Saint Germain and Man United.
  • Cristiano Ronaldo has top scored in six UCL campaigns and has the three highest goal tallies for a season, led by his 17 strikes in 2013-14.
  • Ronaldo also holds the all-time record for goal assists with 37, while Liverpool’s James Milner set a new high mark with nine in the 2017-18 campaign.