The CAF Champions League will use its new calendar by kicking off in November instead of February for the second time in its existence. Egypt’s Al-Hilal will welcome South Africa’s FC Platinum on matchday one while Congo’s TP Mazembe will host another Egyptian side: Zamalek FC.
If you love to bet on sports, the African Champions League promises numerous betting opportunities. Sixteen teams will participate at the group stages, and two top sides from each group will proceed to the knockout levels.
But how do you bet on the tournament? Which bookies have the best odds, and what’s the best way to bet on CAF Champions League games? Find answers to these questions and more below.
Where to Bet
Being a major tournament, betting sites in the UK, Europe and Africa will be keen to offer betting markets. From Bet365 to William Hill, 1XBet to Betway—all your favorite betting sites will probably support the competition.
A few bookmakers will be eager to welcome bettors interested in the competition and could award generous free bets. So, if you are planning to join a new betting site to bet on CAF Champions League, shop around to find a betting site willing to give you a bonus.
Don’t accept just about any betting bonus, though. A free bet is only worth it if it comes from a respected bookie site. The offer should also have flexible terms and conditions. Ensure you know all the requirements that come with bonuses. For instance, find out which games you will be allowed to bet with the bonus and what it will take to cash out your bonus profits.
Still on choosing betting sites, find bookmakers whose websites and mobile apps load smoothly. You don’t want to deposit money on a betting site that lags and crashes during major games. Also, review the websites to confirm they are easy to use so that you can always bet in the least amount of time possible.
The Qualified Teams
Similar to the UEFA Champions League, teams in the African Champions League must go through a qualification stage. CAF selects 52 of the best clubs from its 44 associations to compete for a spot in the Champions League. The best 16 teams then qualify for the group stage.
With the group stages starting late this month, you have a chance to bet on all the eight matches that will take place on November 29. Of course, the smart decision is to choose a few games and base your research on them.
Egyptian sides fair exceptionally well at the competition. So picking them to win when they face less known teams increases your odds of winning. However, don’t overlook Congo’s TP Mazembe, Algeria’s USM Alger, and Moroccan sides. They also have impressive records at the competition.
Finding Value Bets and Comparing Odds
If you haven’t caught the bug of value betting, you are not maximizing your profits. Many professional punters these days bet only after finding the most valuable wager. They then compare football odds using tools like oddspedia to find out which betting site has the best odds for each game. Of course, professionals repeat the same system continuously to earn consistent profits.
Value betting and comparing odds goes hand in hand, but they can both help you maximize your profits. The first one involves finding wagers with better odds than bookmakers believe. To illustrate this point, let’s use the match between TP Mazembe and Zamalek as an example.
Both the Congolese side and the Egyptian team have won the African Champions League five times. Only Al Ahly has won the competition more times with eight trophies. That means when the teams meet, brilliant football is about to be played.
More importantly, the teams can score each other or play defensively and keep goals scored to a minimum. History shows the teams play defensive football. So, if you find a betting site with high odds for Under 2.5 goals, it is value be worth considering.
Best Wagers for CAF Champions League
Africa’s Champions League, like its European counterpart, features lots of goals at the group stage. It’s not unusual for great teams like Al Ahly, Zamalek, and Mamelodi Sundowns to blow out their opponents with margins of three or more goals.
With that in mind, look out for wagers of Over 2.5 goals (three or more goals) when frequent CAF Champions League participants meet newcomers. Bets on both teams to score also have frequent win-rates, especially among teams from the Sub-Saharan side of Africa.
North African teams, on the other hand, play defensively even when they face off ranked much lower in CAF rankings. They up their defensive prowess when they meet decent or equally good teams, which make them great for predicting ‘no-goal’ wagers (one or both sides fail to score).
Predicting the correct score on CAF Champions League games is a tad challenging. Teams involved in the competition are continuously improving their squads, while consistency in some teams also makes it difficult to predict their games correctly.
CAF CL Betting Tips
Don’t spend all day analyzing CAF Champions League games when you could also get help from tipsters. Do a bit of research and find value bets. Once you feel confident in your predictions, visit tipster websites to compare your picks.
The best football prediction websites give you detailed explanations of their picks. That way, you can view their reasons of why they have a different prediction as you do. Of course, tipsters can also be wrong.
Compare predictions from different tipsters to read their explanations and to understand their viewpoints. They could have information about a suspended player you don’t know about. They might have checked away records about South African teams and realized they don’t perform well at home.
Final Verdict
You might not have plans to watch this year’s Africa Champions League. But if you bet on sports regularly, it’s a competition worth your time. It will be broadcast worldwide and supported by tons of European and African betting sites. So, start choosing good bookie sites, review their bonus terms, and research to find value bets.
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