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We’re down to eight teams in the UEFA Europa League, which means it’s a great time to check out the updated outright odds. Heading into the Quarterfinals, Athletic Club are favorites to come away with their first European trophy. However, it won’t be a clear path for Nico Williams and Bilbao especially since teams like Manchester United, Lyon, Tottenham and Lazio are still in the competition. That said, we’ll go through the odds and share the best bet in the Europa League going forward.
First, we have to look at the bracket to see what it will take for each team to reach the final and lift the trophy.
Best Bet in the Europa League: Bracket and Quarterfinal Matchups
Tottenham take on Eintracht Frankfurt, which will be a tough test for both sides. The winner over two legs will play whoever wins the Bodo/Glimt vs Lazio tie in the Semifinals. It’s not going to be easy for Lazio, who lost 5-0 to Bologna over the weekend, to win a match in Norway.
On the other side of the bracket, 2022 Europa League finalists Rangers take on tournament favorites Athletic Club. Whoever advances will face the winner of what promises to be a dogfight between Lyon and Manchester United.
Remember, teams contest all fixtures in the Europa League knockout stage over two legs, except for the Final. Also, UEFA scrapped the away goals rule a couple of years back so any draws over two legs will mean extra time and potentially penalties.
Before we share the best bet in the Europa League, we’ll check out the team-by-team odds.
Tottenham: Best Bet in the Europa League?
Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham are languishing in 14th place in the Premier League. Earlier this season, Big Ange said he “always wins things in his second year.” With the Europa League his only chance to make that statement come true, Spurs will go all in on the competition.
They will not be playing European football next season unless they are able to win their first trophy since 2008. After last weekend’s 2-0 loss to Fulham, pressure continues to mount on Postecoglou, who may not even get to see Spurs through the Europa League.
The thing is, the betting odds favor Tottenham to beat Eintracht Frankfurt in the Quarterfinal. So, they just need to take down Frankfurt and one of Bodo/Glimt and Lazio to reach their first European Final for six years.
Despite an injury crisis, Tottenham finished in fourth place in the league phase. They also overturned a 1-0 first leg deficit in the round of 16 against AZ Alkmaar. Now, more of their side is healthy but they have been unable to put together a stretch of coherent performances.
Tottenham show +400 odds to win the competition. However, no one would be surprised if they go out against Eintracht Frankfurt. So, they are not the best bet in the Europa League.
Eintracht Frankfurt: Best Bet in the Europa League?
Losing Omar Marmoush to Manchester City in January was the biggest reason we didn’t pick Eintracht Frankfurt to make the Bundesliga top four. However, they still have Hugo Ekitike, who has scored 19 goals this season, in all competitions. Frankfurt also bolstered their forward depth with Michy Batshuayi and Elye Wahi after Marmoush left.
Eintracht Frankfurt finished in fifth place in the group stage but had the lowest goal difference of any team in the top eight. That’s because they conceded 10 goals in just eight matches. Even though they destroyed Ajax 6-2 in the round of 16, on aggregate, Frankfurt have conceded in 11 straight games in all competitions.
They’ve also only managed to beat Tottenham once in four previous meetings. Dino Toppmoller‘s Frankfurt will have to dig deep to make a deep run. However, they won the Europa League just three years ago under Oliver Glasner. Still, only three of the 16 players that stepped on the field that day are still on Frankfurt’s roster.
So, +700 odds to win the UEL seem fair but they’re not the best bet in the Europa League.
Bodo/Glimt
Bodo/Glimt were 2024 Norwegian Eliteserien champions for a fourth time in five seasons. At +3300 odds to win the competition, they are the biggest underdogs remaining.
Still, no one can afford to take them lightly. Bodo/Glimt have won eight of their last nine European home matches.They have a massive home field advantage, given that they play in the Arctic Circle.
Don’t expect Lazio to be able to completely prepare for the conditions of an April night match in Bodo. Striker Kasper Hogh is also joint-top scorer in the Europa League, with seven goals in 10 games.
Most impressively, Bodo/Glimt advanced through the knockout playoff round and round of 16 even though their domestic season ended four months ago. They kick off the 2025 Eliteserien season on Saturday and will have a few weeks to round into form before taking on Lazio.
Kjetil Knutsen has done an incredible job with Bodo/Glimt and they may just be able to pull off the upset against Lazio to get to their first-ever Semifinal. Despite some favorable odds, I don’t see them being able to win the competition. So, Bodo/Glimt aren’t the best bet in the Europa League either.
Lazio
Lazio finished the group stage on top of the Europa League table, with six wins, one draw and a loss. With a +12 goal difference, Lazio also led the Europa League field. They survived a tough test from Viktoria Plzen last week and picked up a 3-2 aggregate victory. However, Bologna smashed Lazio 5-0 last Sunday as Lazio looked dead tired.
The international break couldn’t come at a better time for Lazio, who just got done with a stretch of seven games in three weeks. Still, I don’t exactly think it is a good sign that the Biancocelesti struggled to take down the Czech League’s fifth-placed team in the round of 16.
UEFA also banned Lazio fans from attending the Quarterfinal first leg against Bodo/Glimt. If Lazio take a deficit into the second leg, it’s not going to be easy to overturn it. Mattia Zaccagni and Taty Castellanos are good players but Lazio are undeniably a beatable team.
The Europa League odds list Lazio as the joint-third most likely team to win the competition, at +400. However, I don’t think they’re the best bet in the Europa League.
Rangers
Giovanni van Bronckhorst led Rangers to the Europa League Final in 2022. However, 2024-25 has been an up and down season for the Glasgow club.
Rangers sacked manager Philippe Clement a few weeks ago, pulling the trigger after a 2-0 loss to St. Mirren. This was just two weeks after cross-town, second-tier club Queen’s Park knocked Rangers out of the Scottish Cup.
Now, Rangers are 13 points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership table. However, interim manager Barry Ferguson led Rangers past Fenerbahce and Celtic in last weekend’s Old Firm Derby. In the Europa League round of 16, Fenerbahce forced penalties with a 2-0 win at the Ibrox but Rangers prevailed.
Vaclav Cerny has scored six goals in the Europa League, including two in the 3-1 first leg victory over Fenerbahce. With not much to play for in the Scottish League, expect Rangers to go all in on the Europa League.
Athletic Club is a very tough opponent and Rangers odds to win the Europa League reflect that. Plus, they’d have to take down one of Manchester United or Lyon to reach the final. At +2000, Rangers look like a somewhat intriguing pick. However, they’re not the best bet in the Europa League.
Athletic Club
Athletic Club certainly look like the strongest team remaining in the Europa League. They matched Lazio‘s 6-1-1 record in the group stage but finished in second place on goal difference. If the season ended today, Athletic Club and Eintracht Frankfurt would be the only UEL clubs to qualify directly for season’s UEFA Champions League.
Ernesto Valverde‘s Bilbao are in fourth place in La Liga and survived a brutal fixture against Roma. Athletic Club lost 2-1 in the first leg but took advantage of Mats Hummels‘ red card in the second and won 4-3, on aggregate. The Williams brothers, Nico and Iñaki, scored three of Athletic Club’s four goals.
In 41 games this season, in all competitions, Athletic Club have only conceded 36 goals. They should advance past Rangers but it’s anyone’s guess what happens in the Semifinal and beyond. Athletic did manage to win the Copa del Rey last season and knocked out Barcelona and Atletico Madrid along the way.
If the Williams brothers, attacking midfielder Oihan Sancet and defenders Yeray Alvarez and Dani Vivian can stay healthy, Athletic have a good shot to win their first Europa League trophy.
However, at +325 odds, I don’t think they’re the best bet in the Europa League from a value standpoint.
Lyon
Lyon have been in incredible form lately and have won five games in a row, in all competitions. Paulo Fonseca‘s side also destroyed FCSB 7-1, on aggregate, in the Europa League round of 16. Malick Fofana, Ernest Nuamah and Georges Mikautadze all managed two goals in the fixture.
Since the beginning of February, Lyon have averaged three goals per game. They are more than capable of causing Manchester United a world of problems. Fofana is just 19 years old but the Belgian international winger has scored six Europa League goals.
Captain Alexandre Lacazette has plenty of experience and he and Mikautadze have both scored 13 goals, in all competitions. Meanwhile, Rayan Cherki has been in stellar form and he leads the Europa League with eight assists.
Despite their +1100 odds, I think Lyon have just as good a chance as anyone to go on and win the competition. With favorable odds and stellar form, they are our Top Soccer Bet and the best bet in the Europa League going forward.
Manchester United
Manchester United will treat the Europa League very seriously going forward. It’s their only route into European football next season. Ruben Amorim’s side are in 13th place in the Premier League but they’ve put in much better performances in the UEL.
United haven’t lost in the Europa League this season and got through their round of 16 fixture against Real Sociedad unscathed. They also haven’t lost for over a month, excluding a penalty shootout loss to Fulham in the FA Cup.
Bruno Fernandes has been playing very well lately and he’s a UEL legend. He scored a hat trick (two penalties) in the 4-1 second leg victory over Real Sociedad. Fernandes has 41 goal contributions in the Europa League, more than any other player in the competition’s history.
While Rasmus Hojlund has struggled in the EPL, he has also scored five goals in the UEL this season. However, United have kept a clean sheet in just one of their last 10 games, in all competitions.
Lyon are going to be Manchester United’s toughest test yet in the Europa League. So, it’s no guarantee that the Red Devils go through to the Semifinal even though they show +375 odds to win the competition.
If they exit early, it wouldn’t be surprising to see United sack Amorim either. However, I think he deserves more time and a Summer transfer window to implement his tactics.
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