Champions League Group Stage Predictions - 2023-24 UEFA Champions League Picks & Previews

The UEFA Champions League returns and this season has the potential to be one of the most competitive in recent history.

Man City are stronger than ever and looking to make it back to back wins, whilst PSG have added to their ranks in their bid for glory. Arsenal are finally back in amongst the European elite and will fancy their chances of making it to the latter stages, but can we ignore Harry Kanes' Bayern Munich and their chances?

Keep reading to discover our Champions League Group Stage predictions & how to you can bet on major soccer competitions at Stake Sportsbook as 32 teams go head to head for Europe's most prestigious club prize. Bring it on!

UEFA Champions League Group Stage Schedule

Group Stage Dates:

Champions League Group Stage Predictions

Lets take a look throughout the groups, who features amongst them and see which players can make an impression at this stage.

Group A

Group A is made up of German Champions and six-time winners Bayern Munich, three-time winners Manchester United of England, Turkish champions Galatasaray and Danish champions FC Copenhagen.

A lot of special players will be on show in this group, with new Bayern man Harry Kane being the pick of the bunch. He is a proven goal scorer and will be a huge part of Bayern's quest to win the champions league again following their success in 2020.

Manchester United brought in Rasmus Hojlund for big money from Atalanta, and they will be looking to him for the goals to get them into the knockout stages, whilst Galatasaray brought in Hakim Ziyech and Wilfried Zaha from the premier league , as well as making Mauro Icardi’s switch permanent, so they really cannot be slept on and hold an outside chance of progressing.

Finally, FC Copenhagen will be the big underdogs of the group and host the likes of Andreas Cornelius and Mohamed Elyounoussi amongst their ranks. They have a massive task on their hands to reach the knockout rounds or go even further and better their best finish of the last 16 in 2011.

Group B

Group B features England’s premier league runners up Arsenal who are back in the Champions League for the first time since 2016 along with Ligue 1 runners up Lens who are also back in the champions league after a 20 year absence. Last season's Europa league winners Sevilla will also make up part of the group alongside Dutch league runners up PSV. It promises to be a very entertaining group stage.

Arsenal have a lot of special players including the likes Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, and record signing Declan Rice. The Gunners will be many peoples certainties to make it through to the group stages.

Who will join them thought? Sevilla won the UEFA Europa League last season have the experience of big European nights which could give them the upper hand but PSV and Lens especially have nothing to lose and will be giving everything they have to get themselves into the knockouts.

Group C

Group C is a very interesting one, it has the likes of Real Madrid, who are the most successful team in champions league history and Italian Champions Napoli who made it to the quarter finals last season before losing out to AC Milan. Alongside them are Union Berlin who qualified for the Champions League for the first time in their history and Braga who have only featured in the competition twice before in 2010/11 and 2012/13. As for predictions within this group, Real Madrid and Napoli are favourites to cruise through to the knockouts. Keep an eye on players such as Victor Osimhen and Jude Bellingham.

Group D

Group D is probably the group which is the hardest to call out of them all, Inter Milan, RB Salzburg, Real Sociedad and Benfica will face off for the two places in the knockout stages.

Inter Milan lost to Manchester City in last season's final and will be aiming to go one better this year, they also added the likes of Benjamin Pavard and Marcus Thuram to their camp which they will be hoping can give them that bit extra they need.

Real Sociedad last appeared in the competition in 2013/14 so will be eager to make it a longer stay this time around as they failed to get out of the group.

RB Salzburg have been regulars in this tournament over the last few years and made it to the round of 16 in 2021/22 so they will be doing all they can to better that this year with this group.

Finally Benfica, who have made it to the quarter finals for the last two seasons, will massively fancy their chances to go to that stage and beyond this season after adding Angel Di Maria and Orkun Kokcu to the squad. It really is an impossible one to call.

Group E

Group E is a very tasty one on paper, featuring Atletico Madrid, Lazio, Celtic and Feyenoord. Atletico would be clear favourites to top the group and advance to the knockouts judging by past years and name alone but will it be that straightforward for them this year?

Feyenoord are the Dutch champions and will strongly fancy themselves to get out of this group over Lazio who have lost their star player in Milinkovic Savic so things will be a little bit harder for the Italians. Celtic are the outsiders in this group and will be out to shock them all and book a spot in the knockouts from a group they will believe they can do some damage in.

Group F

Group F is almost definitely the group of Death! Two of these sides cannot make it through to the knockout stages which is an almighty shame but that’s football! Paris Saint Germain and Kylian Mbappe will be favourites to make it out of the group and with the additions of Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembele it's probably justified.

The remaining three teams are Newcastle, Borussia Dortmund who will be desperate to make a statement in the champions league as they haven't made it past the quarter finals since they were in the final in 2012/13, and Serie A’s AC Milan. If Newcastle can pick up points away from home and make St James Park their fortress they stand a massive chance but last season's Semi finalists AC Milan will be looking to go one better this year so have to be slight favourites to make it through ahead of the other two.

Group G

Group G has the current champions Manchester City facing off against RB Leipzig of Germany, Crvena Zvezda of Serbia and Young Boys of Switzerland. You would expect a comfortable passage through to the knockout stages for City despite picking up some injuries and more than likely they will be joined by RB Leipzig.

However they have lost the likes of Joško Gvardiol, Dominik Szoboszlai and Christopher Nkunku to the premier league this season, so champions league regulars Crvena Zvezda and Young Boys might have an outside chance, but the difficult draw could prove too much for them.

Group H

Barcelona are clear favourites to top Group H. They will face off against the likes of FC Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk and Royal Antwerp, so you can certainly see why they are! They dropped out at the group stage last year, so this favourable draw will be a real positive this time around in their quest for another Champions League.

Porto are who you would expect to advance with them from this group. They made it to the last 16 last year and have some serious strength in their squad, giving them a huge advantage. It will be a massive task for Shakhtar Donetsk and especially Royal Antwerp to progress from this group!

UEFA Champions League Betting Tips, Odds & Previews

At Stake.com there are many markets available for you to bet on, from pre-match betting to live betting . Here are 3 tips to help you define a betting strategy:

1. Take a look at the promotions on offer - you can increase your bankroll and multiply your winning chances, if you play it smart.

2. Long-term bets offer great odds, so make sure to explore the outright markets - take your guess on who will win the tournament and who is going to be the top scorer.

3. Follow our blog , where you can find our soccer betting guide , online sports betting guide and expert picks from our ambassadors, such as Sergio Aguero .

Types of Bets & How to Bet

Below we explore some of the most popular types of wager you can bet online at Stake:

• Moneyline Bets - you wager on the outcome of the game. There are usually two or three possible outcomes (known as either a 2-way Moneyline or 3-way Moneyline bet) - win, loss, or draw/tie.

• Total Goals (Over/Under) - typically it offers two betting options: you either bet that there will be over a certain amount of goals or under. The amount depends on the match. An example: over/under 2.5 is a popular bet in the UEFA Champions League.

• Correct Score - this type of bet is easy to understand, and there is a lot of options available pre-match and during the game.

• Team/Player Props - these bets are tailored to the performance of specific players or teams, such as which team will score first or which player will be carded.

• Handicap Betting - these bets allow sports bettors to boost their odds by attributing a virtual disadvantage to a team.

• Parlay - a multi-level wager also known as accumulator. Combining the odds of all the selections you make boost your potencial winnings by a lot. However, please note that to win you need all selections to be correct.

• Live Sports Betting - Betting on soccer games as they’re actively in progress. Most bet types, including moneyline, point spread, totals, and more, will still be available in play, so fill your boots whilst watching the game.

Live Stream Champions League Online

At Stake Sportsbook, you can stream Champions League games for free by simply logging into your Stake account, heading to our live streaming section and selecting the game you'd like to watch! Learn more about how to live stream your favourite sports online with our sports streaming guide .

When are the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League Knock-Out Rounds & Finals?

The knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League get underway in February 2024.

The Final will take place at Wembley on Saturday June 1st, where the best two teams will face off to lift the most prestigious prize in club football.

Knockout Stages Schedule

• Round Of 16: February 13/14/20/21 and March 5/6/12/13, 2024.

• Quarter Finals: April 9/10 and 16/17, 2024.

• Semi Finals: April 30/May 1 and May 7/8, 2024.

• Final: June 1, 2024.

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