UEFA Champions League 2023 Odds, Best Bets & Predictions
The Derby della Madonnina (also known as the derby di Milano) comprises half of the UEFA Champions League semifinalists as AC Milan and Inter Milan collide in the San Siro Stadium on Wednesday. It’s one of the most storied rivalries to grace the biggest stage in European soccer, two decades after their last meeting at this very juncture of the top-tier club competition.
Before that, the winningest club in Champions League history and reigning champion Real Madrid kick off the final four on Tuesday against the Premier League darlings Manchester City in the Santiago Bernabéu.
In what is a rematch of last season’s scintillating UCL semi-final and a matchup of this season’s top two favorites at online sportsbooks in the battle for a place in the tournament’s final in Istanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium on Saturday 10 June 2023.
Champions League Manchester City fronts the Champions League odds board across sportsbook platforms, best tipped at Caesars, FanDuel and Bet365 as the -150 odds-on favorite. Real Madrid registers as the second-best bet – albeit priced as high as +360 at FanDuel to successfully defend their title and clinch a record 15th Champions League title. Whereas Inter Milan and AC Milan ring in as the longshots to win outright with betting odds starting at a low of +650 at BetMGM).
Read on for how we expect it to shake out in the penultimate round as we preview both semifinal matchups, complete with predictions and soccer picks.
Latest Champions League Winner Odds
Odds current as of Monday, May 8 and courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook
Real Madrid vs Man City Prediction
- First leg: Tuesday, May 9 at the Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
- Second leg: : Wednesday, May 17 at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester City
Los Blancos will attempt to see off a third straight Premier League side after eliminating Liverpool and Chelsea in the first two knockout stages. They crushed Liverpool 6-2 on aggregate and put four unanswered goals past Chelsea over the two legs of the quarterfinal round. But the soccer betting odds aren’t cornered in their camp — not even for the first leg, where they’ll have the benefit of home advantage. Real Madrid is priced at +225 with BetMGM to win on Tuesday night. While Man City is tipped as the +119 favorite and the draw at +250 at Caesars.
This is the ninth meeting between these two sides in European competition with both taking a 3-3-2 record in the previous eight. Man City won three of the last four, but Real took the last meeting. Doing it in dramatic fashion, rallying from a 4-3 deficit in the first leg of the UCL semis to win 6-5 on aggregate in the Spanish capital.
Year after year, the best online sportsbooks tip Man City as the team to beat in Europe’s top-tier club competition. And yet, Pep Guardiola’s side is yet to deliver on those expectations. The last time Guardiola led a side to the coveted title was in 2011 when he was the manager of the Catalan giants, Barcelona.
In 2021, his Citizens came very close only to bottle it in a lackluster 1-0 loss to Liverpool in their first-ever final appearance. Last year they seemingly had one foot in the final before Los Blancos turned the tables on them in the second leg of the semis.
Guardiola will attempt to lead his charges to a second UCL final. Man City is in fantastic form, undefeated in 20 consecutive competitive matches (which includes five straight wins most recently) and they have the Treble in their sights still.
Admittedly, Real’s form has been patchy of late with away defeats to Real Sociedad (2-0) and Girona (4-2) on either side of a home win over Almeria (4-2) in La Liga action. Nevertheless, Carlo Ancelotti’s side will be buoyed by a 2-1 victory over Osasuna in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday – their first title of the season.
When it comes to this competition, Los Blancos are clearly standard-setting. They’ve won five of the last eight UCL’s and ride a six-match winning streak in UCL knockouts (going back to last season). On paper, Man City is the so-called better team. But one could argue Real Madrid is the better bet, at the very least for the first leg if the tie itself.
Prediction: Real Madrid to win tie at +250
Pick: Real Madrid To Win Tie +250 at BetMGM
AC Milan vs. Inter Milan Prediction
- First leg: Wednesday, May 10 at the San Siro Stadium, Milan
- Second leg: Tuesday, May 16 at the San Siro Stadium, Milan
The Milan derby returns to the world stage this week after a two-decade hiatus. Neither AC Milan or Inter Milan has a shot at the Serie A title but European glory is potentially within their reach, respectively. Even if it is a longshot bet as we look at the latest odds at the sportsbook exchange and their corresponding betting apps.
What makes this matchup unique is the fact that home advantage is a moot point given both teams are domiciled at the San Siro. In the broad spectrum of the tournament, AC Milan is the debatable underdog at several sports betting sites.
Elsewhere, they are jointly tipped with Inter Milan as the third-best bet at others. As far as the first leg goes, the match is nestled delicately on the odds board with both sides tipped at +210 to win and the draw priced at +145.
Stefano Pioli’s AC side stunned Scudetto champions Napoli in the quarterfinals, edging past them 2-1 on aggregate. At the same time, Simone Inzaghi’s Inter defeated Benfica 5-3 on aggregate. Inter has the form advantage over AC and the recent head-to-head edge with wins in the Italian Super Cup (3-0) and Serie A (1-0).
Few would have predicted one or both of these Milan clubs making it this far in the competition. And for one, the journey is not over as a spot in the final beckons. To all intents and purposes, it’s a right tossup.
Prediction: AC Milan to Win Tie +137 at bet 365
