Champions League 2024/25 winner: Betting odds and prediction

The dawn of the new Champions League campaign is almost upon us, so what better time to take a close look at who might be lifting ol' Big Ears come May?

Odds Now's Brad Walker runs you through all of the major contenders to come out on top in football's premier club competition. 

Champions League 2024/25 outright market leaders

Manchester City (11/4)

Pep Guardiola's side remain one of the strongest the continent has to offer. The English champions come in firm favourites to repeat their 2023 heroics and win the competition this time around at 11/4. 

Manchester City won the Champions League for the first time in Istanbul 15 months ago, courtesy of a sublime Rodri strike against Inter Milan in the final. 

Guardiola's men were unable to defend their title after suffering a heartbreaking quarter-final defeat on penalties to eventual winners Real Madrid last season but remain in good stead to compete in the latter stages this time around.

Star striker Erling Haaland's form will be a significant pillar in any continental success the Citizens enjoy. The Norwegian has already found the net nine times in four Premier League matches and sits as a firm favourite (3/1, general) to top the scoring charts in the Champions League this season. 

Real Madrid (7/2)

The Spanish giants are synonymous with this competition. No club has won the Champions League/European Cup more times than Los Blancos, who've lifted the trophy on 15 separate occasions.

Real Madrid also come into the new season as champions, having beaten Borussia Dortmund 2-0 in last season's final at Wembley Stadium. The victory meant Carlo Ancelotti's side have now won the Champions League in two of the previous three seasons and six times since the 2013-14 campaign.

Their continued domination of the continent was handed another significant boost with the acquistion of star forward Kylian Mbappe in the summer. While the Frenchman is yet to win the Champions League, Mbappe already has 48 goals and 26 assists in 73 appearances in the competition. 

Real Madrid secured their 15th Champions League/European Cup triumph at Wembley in June. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

Arsenal (17/2)

The meteoric rise of Mikel Arteta's Gunners over the previous two seasons has seen them emerge as one of the favourites to win the Champions League in 2024-25. Arsenal have never won the competition, though they did reach the final in Paris back in 2006. 

A 3-2 aggregate defeat to Bayern Munich saw them bow out at the quarter-final stage last season but another strong showing in the summer transfer window leaves them in a strong position to compete on both domestic and European fronts once again. 

In truth, Arsenal are the least-established in Europe out of the five leading contenders discussed in this piece but will be hoping to replicate Manchester City's 2023 success to secure their first ever Champions League triumph in Munich at the end of May.

Bayern Munich (12/1)

The Germans endured a torrid campaign by their standards last season. Not only did Bayern surrender the Bundesliga title to Bayer Leverkusen - the first time they'd not won the German top-flight in 12 years - but Munich were also knocked out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage by the aforementioned Real Madrid.

The season must have left striker Harry Kane wondering what he has to do to win a trophy having made the move from Tottenham Hotspur last summer. Nevertheless, previous manager Thomas Tuchel has since left and made way, bizarrely, for former Burnley manager Vincent Kompany. 

To be fair to the Belgian, Bayern have made a solid start to the new season. They've won all four of their domestic fixtures so far and still boast an impressive squad blessed with a wealth of world-class talent.

Whether they have enough to oust the likes of Madrid and City remains to be seen, but Bayern are certainly worth a mention when discussing the potential winners of the competition this time around.

Liverpool (14/1)

Six-time Champions League winners Liverpool have returned to the competition after a brief hiatus in the Europa League last season. The Reds won the competition back in 2019 and also finished runners-up in both 2018 and 2022, but head into the campaign without former manager Jurgen Klopp.

New head coach Arne Slot has taken control of the reins and won his first three competitive matches in charge before coming up short with a 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend. 

Nevertheless, the Liverpool squad remains rife with individuals who know how to navigate their way to the latter stages of the competition. Senior figures in Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker have all played in multiple finals and will be targeting another appearance in Munich at the end of May.

Odds Now's Champions League winner best bet

How can anyone bet against a Real Madrid side which not only enters the comptetition as holders, but has also added a generational talent in Kylian Mbappe to their ranks?

The 25-year-old has joined a Los Blancos team bustling with world-class, youthful exuberance. Alongside the likes of Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham, Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni, Mbappe forms part of a star-studded roster which looks set to compete for the biggest honours for years to come. 

Sure, the likes of Manchester City and Bayern Munich will compete but I think they'll ultimately come up short against a phenomenal Real Madrid outfit blessed with world-class players in every area of the pitch. 

I'll be kicking myself if I didn't back Ancelotti's side only for them to go and lift the trophy at the end of May. They're my Champions League winners for 2024-25.