Champions League Matchday 1 brings Real Madrid v Inter, PSG’s title defence and the latest odds for Europe’s biggest clubs.
After a summer of transfer sagas and, in Real Madrid's case, an entire coaching dynasty coming and going, the Champions League is finally back.
The league phase — now in its third season under the expanded 36-team format — gets underway across three days, September 8-10, with all 18 Matchday 1 fixtures split into three separate slates. Each side plays eight different opponents over the league phase before the traditional knockout rounds resume, and the opening round already has plenty worth watching.
Hanging over the whole competition is Paris Saint-Germain's status as two-time defending champions. PSG beat Inter to win it all in 2024-25, then went back-to-back by outlasting Arsenal on penalties in the 2026 final.
Arsenal, still nursing that heartbreak, and Inter, looking to erase the memory of that 2025 final drubbing, both feature prominently in this opening round.
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Ahead of Matchday 1, bet365's Steve Freeth summed up how the outright market is shaping up:
“The UEFA Champions League is back with PSG aiming to win the famous trophy for a third successive season. Jose Mourinho is back at Real Madrid and it's the 15-time winners that have attracted the most support so far with 26.3% of global slips being for the 13/2 Bernabeu outfit, in front of 6/1 Barcelona who take 21.1%. 5/1 favourites PSG sit just behind in third with 20.1% followed by Harry Kane's 6/1 shots Bayern Munich with a 13.5% share.
“6/1 Arsenal are the best of the English with 8.7%, but there's not much love for 9/1 Manchester City who take less than 2% — a side that were 2/1 favourites just two years ago. Man City and Haaland were 2/1 and 11/4 respectively just two years ago, now there's not much love for either as they begin life under Enzo Maresca.”
Visit the bet365 UEFA Champions League Hub for the latest odds.
Real Madrid vs Inter (21:00 CET) is the marquee fixture of the whole matchday, and not just because of the opponent.
Real Madrid go into it with their third head coach of the calendar year: Xabi Alonso was sacked in January, interim man Álvaro Arbeloa held the fort into the summer, and after Florentino Pérez's re-election as club president, the Bernabéu called in Jose Mourinho — back for a second spell, 13 years after his first ended, following a trophyless stretch and a Clásico loss to Barcelona that decided last season's La Liga title.
Mourinho's competitive return to Champions League football, against an Inter side he knows well, is exactly the kind of subplot Matchday 1 dreams of. bet365 make Real Madrid 3/5 favourites, with the draw at 10/3 and Inter out at 4/1.
Elsewhere on the opening night, Borussia Dortmund vs Villarreal (Dortmund 8/11, draw 3/1, Villarreal 16/5) and Porto vs Manchester City (Porto 7/2, draw 3/1, City 7/10) both pit City's continued pursuit of another deep European run against a Portuguese side that has given English opposition trouble before.
Club Brugge vs Aston Villa sees the Belgian hosts priced at 17/10 against Villa's 7/5, with the draw at 11/4, while Lille vs Real Betis and AEK Athens vs LASK round out a night that gives two more clubs an early taste of league-phase football.
The middle slate is headlined by two of last season's semi-finalists in Barcelona vs Feyenoord, where the hosts are as short as 1/12 with the draw at 9/1 and Feyenoord a rank outsider at 22/1, plus a heavyweight all-Premier League-vs-La Liga test in Liverpool vs Atlético Madrid (Liverpool 7/10, draw 3/1, Atlético 15/4). Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain host Slovan Bratislava at an eye-watering 1/25, a fixture that looks straightforward on paper (the draw is 14/1, Slovan 33/1) but is exactly the type of banana skin PSG will want to avoid as they chase a third straight title.
Sporting CP vs Galatasaray carries extra weight this year: Turkey has two clubs in the league phase for the first time since the 2007-08 season, and Galatasaray (16/5, draw 14/5, Sporting 4/5) will want to make an early statement.
The pick of the day for neutrals, though, might be Napoli vs Arsenal — a rematch of sorts for Arsenal, who will be desperate to show that last season's final defeat to PSG hasn't knocked their momentum; bet365 make the Gunners 3/4 favourites away from home, with Napoli at 15/4 and the draw 27/10.
Stuttgart vs Viking completes the day's action, with Viking one of two Norwegian sides in the competition this season — the first time Norway has had two clubs at this stage since 1999-2000.
The final slate brings two of the tournament's best storylines. Manchester United host Sabah (1/9 on United, draw 8/1, Sabah 20/1) in a fixture that's historic on its own terms: the Azerbaijani club has qualified for the league phase for the first time ever, becoming one of the youngest clubs to reach this stage of the competition.
Fenerbahçe vs Roma is Turkey's other league-phase representative in action, with the hosts priced at 12/5, the draw also 12/5, and Roma the narrow favourites at 23/20. Bayern München vs Bodø/Glimt sees the Bundesliga giants (1/9, draw 17/2, Bodø/Glimt 20/1) open against Norway's other entrant.
Also on Thursday: PSV Eindhoven vs Shakhtar Donetsk, Como vs RB Leipzig — a big early test for Como, who are making their Champions League debut this season, priced at 17/20 against Leipzig's 14/5 with the draw at 29/10 — and Slavia Praha vs Lens closing out the round.
Tuesday, September 8
Wednesday, September 9
Thursday, September 10
Odds format is home / draw / away. All kickoff times are CET; subtract one hour for UK time (BST), and adjust further for other time zones.
Beyond Matchday 1, bet365 also have markets open on how the whole season plays out:
To Win Outright — Barcelona 5/1, PSG 11/2, Arsenal 6/1, Bayern Munich 6/1, Real Madrid 13/2, Manchester City 9/1, Liverpool 12/1, Manchester United 20/1, Inter Milan 28/1, Atlético Madrid 33/1, Aston Villa 40/1
To Reach the Final — PSG 3/1, Arsenal 10/3, Barcelona 10/3, Bayern Munich 7/2, Real Madrid 7/2, Manchester City 9/2, Liverpool 5/1, Manchester United 9/1, Inter Milan 12/1, Atlético Madrid 16/1, Aston Villa 18/1
Top Goalscorer — Kylian Mbappé 7/2, Harry Kane 7/1, Erling Haaland 8/1, Ousmane Dembélé 12/1, Raphinha 14/1, Jude Bellingham 16/1, Vinícius Jr 16/1, Alexander Isak 20/1, Lautaro Martínez 20/1, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia 22/1
Mbappé is also running away with it in the outright scorer betting on slips placed so far — he's attracted 54% of global slips, well clear of Kane (26%), Raphinha (7%), Haaland (4%) and Guirassy (2%).
Nationality of Winner — England 6/4, Spain 2/1, France 4/1, Germany 5/1, Italy 10/1, Any Other Nation 14/1
Odds courtesy of bet365 and correct as of 8 September 2026; prices are subject to change. 18+. Please gamble responsibly.
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