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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:

United States UEFA Champions League Bookies

UEFA Champions League Bookies

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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.

United States Best soccer bookmakers

Best soccer bookmakers

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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.

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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 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.

  • 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

  • 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)

  • 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)


  • 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.

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