Soccer, or football if you're not from the United States and Canada, is by far the most popular sport in the world. It draws millions of fans from around the world on a weekly basis who eagerly look to get their fix. When you talk about the "King Sport" one interleague tournament shines above all else as the top soccer club competition in the world, the UEFA Champions League, a tournament highly sought after by online betting fans. This tournament pits all the top clubs from the best soccer leagues in Europe for the coveted Champions League trophy, with stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo having been both on the winning side of this tournament in past editions.
It's quite clear that the coronavirus pandemic brought the sporting industry to a stop in 2020, the soccer world included. That though didn't stop UEFA from continuing with their main tournament to try and bring fans a little bit of joy to their voluntary seclusion. With the knockout stages soon to start, let's talk about who's looking best for fans to wager on.
Top Favorites
If we're going to talk about top favorites then we should look no further than defending champions and German soccer machine Bayern Munich. With 18 goals in the first 6 matches of the tournament, the German giants seem like they haven't lost a beat in their dominating playing streak. With Robert Lewandowsky as their main striking option, they are the closest thing to impossible when it comes to losing.Now, if you're more about heart over sheer dominance then the title holders from two years ago, Liverpool FC are a sure fire choice. The north England squad have gone through a massive facelift under the directions of German skipper Jurgen Klopp to become the title hungry team they've always been known to be. While beating out Bayern Munich as favorites seems hard, having played the finals in two of the last three seasons makes the Reds a very attractive opinion for fans.
Last but not least a couple more honorable mentions. First we have French super side PSG, that after losing last season's finals against Bayern Munich, with the likes of Neymar Jr., M'bappe and company and with Mauricio Pochettino as their new head coach they want revenge over last year's faux pas. And then, the perennial best team each season that always ends up a bit short, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City.
On The Hunt But Not There Yet
It's strange to talk about teams like Juventus, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico de Madrid and not automatically put them up there with the favorites to take it all, but then again this season has not been the kindest to everyone. While in Barcelona bringing in past legend Ronald Koeman as their new coach hasn't done anything to stop the almost certain departure of Lio Messi and Real Madrid struggling to find a proper rhythm both in the domestic spanish tournament as well as the continental one, both teams, multiple past champions, are not looking like the best picks for sportsbook fans.Juventus, led by Cristiano Ronaldo and Diego Simeone's Atlético de Madrid are also bringing strong arguments to the table, with the Italian side still being as dominant as they have been for the past years, and a surprising Atlético squad that is sitting lonely at the top of the domestic spanish La Liga tournament. One could argue that the pressure for top performances in both local and continental tournaments might end up hurting their chances to go for the gold.
