UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Betting Odds, Tips & Live Stream Soccer
Europe’s premier club soccer competition returns this season, as the strongest teams from across the continent face off to decide the champions. You can enjoy a host of soccer betting action at Stake Sportsbook, with odds available on all UEFA Champions League matches for the latest season.
What is the UEFA Champions League?
The UEFA Champions League, often shortened to the UCL, is a European soccer tournament that takes place every season. Teams from all over Europe qualify for the competition based on their performance in their domestic leagues. This is the top level of European competition, ahead of the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League.
Teams from top leagues such as the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, and Ligue 1 automatically qualify for the Champions League alongside the winners of last season’s Europa League. In addition, sides in lower-ranked leagues also have a chance to take part by progressing through the qualifying process, which is made up of 4 rounds.
The Champions League has always been one of the most prestigious club soccer tournaments, featuring the best players from around the world and some of the oldest and most successful clubs. Winners will automatically qualify for the UEFA Super Cup, and the last 3 winners of the UCL also qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup.
History of the UEFA Champions League
The Champions League began as the European Cup in the 1955/56 season, featuring 16 teams from across Europe. The first 5 editions of the competition were won by Real Madrid, who have the most UCL titles at 15.
In the early days of the European Cup, the tournament was only open to invited teams or teams that had won their domestic league, and it was a straight knockout tournament.
In 1992, the competition was rebranded as the Champions League, and the format changed to include a round-robin group stage. It was then expanded to allow multiple entrants from top-ranked countries from the 1997/98 season.
For the 2024/25 season, the UCL changed again. The opening group stage was replaced with a league phase, which was hugely popular with fans thanks to the exciting matches and drama that it helped create. The 2025 Champions League final was won by PSG, who dominated Inter Milan to secure a 5-0 victory, the largest final win in Champions League history.
Format & Schedule of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League
The league phase format returns with the 2025/26 Champions League, followed by the knockout rounds to determine the champion. Before that, teams that haven’t automatically qualified must get through the qualifiers.
Qualifying Rounds
A total of 53 teams will play in the qualifying rounds of the 2025/26 Champions League. Eventually, 7 teams will progress from the play-offs to join the 29 teams that have automatically qualified for the league phase. Losers of the UCL qualifying process may enter the Conference League or Europa League qualifying process.
8-9 July and 15-16 July - First round
22-23 July and 29-30 July - Second round
5-6 August and 12-13 August - Third round
19-20 August and 26-27 August - Play-offs
League Phase
The league phase starts with the draw, which determines the 4 home and 4 away games that each of the 36 teams will play.
28 August - League draw
16-18 September - Matchday 1
30 September - 1 October - Matchday 2
21-22 October - Matchday 3
4-5 November - Matchday 4
25-26 November - Matchday 5
9-10 December - Matchday 6
20-21 January - Matchday 7
28 January - Matchday 8
Knockout Rounds
After the league phase has concluded, the top 8 teams progress to the round of 16. Teams from 9th to 24th place will need to win their play-off matches to progress.
During the knockouts, each team plays a home and away fixture. If the aggregate scores are level, extra time and penalties are used to determine the winner.
30 January - Knockout play-offs draw
17-18 February and 24-25 February - Knockout play-offs
10-11 March and 17-18 March - Round of 16
7-8 April and 14-15 April - Quarter-finals
28-29 April and 5-6 May - Semi-finals
30 May - Final
Which Teams Play in the UEFA Champions League?
Some of the top sides in the 2025/26 UCL include:
Real Madrid - 15 titles
Bayern Munich - 6 titles
Liverpool - 6 titles
Barcelona - 5 titles
Ajax - 4 titles
Inter Milan - 3 titles
Juventus - 2 titles
Chelsea - 2 titles
How to Bet on the UEFA Champions League & Types of Soccer Betting
It’s easy to start betting on soccer games and the UCL at Stake. If you’re a complete beginner, it’s worth checking out our complete sports betting guide. Down below, we’ve laid out the key steps you’ll need to place your first bet:
Log in to your Stake.com account or sign up if you haven’t already.
Check your available balance in the wallet and select the deposit button if needed.
Secure your coins in the Stake vault, then search Soccer > International Clubs > Champions League to see every live and upcoming football match.
Select a match to see the full list of betting options and add any to your bet slip.
Enter your stake, check your payout, and confirm to place your bet.
There are many ways to bet on the UEFA Champions League at Stake, with a wide range of betting markets on every game. Some of the most popular options include:
You can bet on the Champions League live at Stake too. All UCL games offer pre-match and live betting options to choose from. If you want to see the latest live football odds, just log in and open the live section. Selecting a game will reveal the full extent of the live betting markets, along with live stats. You can enjoy free live soccer streams at Stake too, including UCL qualifiers.
