More In-Play Betting Opportunities on the Champions League this season

It has recently come to our attention that there has been a change of fixture scheduling as far as Europe’s elite club competition is concerned. In previous seasons, the last sixteen ties would start with four first leg games on the Tuesday and the other four matches taking place on the Wednesday. This pattern would then be repeated a fortnight later, essentially giving punters four nights on In-Play betting opportunities.

However, it’s all change for season 2009/10. Now there will be two Champions League matches being played on 16th February, 17th February, 23rd February, 24th February, 9th March, 10th March, 16th March and 17th March! Eight evenings where customers can turn on their televisions, log on to their favourite bookmaker such as bet365 or Ladbrokes and decide which of the two matches are most attractive for In-Play betting!

UEFA have clearly identified that the Champions League has now become so popular that the competition can demand high viewing figures when it reaches the business end of proceedings. There are some truly exciting ties taking place, with Jose Mourinho’s return to Chelsea possibly making Inter’s last sixteen game the most attractive. The first leg at the San Siro will be all the better for In-Play betting, considering that the only other match that night is CSKA Moscow v Sevilla, with bookmakers looking forward to increased business as a result.

The bookies are expecting England to have the upper hand over Italy at this stage of the competition, with Paddy Power offering 8/15 that Carlo Ancelotti has the upper hand over his nemesis at Inter. The Italian’s former club Milan entertain Manchester United on 16th February, with all eyes on David Beckham as he looks to help steer the Rossoneri to a memorable victory. However, bet365 offer a best price 4/7 that Sir Alex Ferguson will be having the last laugh, with Milan the 6/4 outsiders (Coral).

Once the competition reaches the quarter finals, we will see a return to the normal format of two matches being played on four separate evenings. While the bookmakers like to promote In-Play excitement during the group stages by stating that punters can bet live on up to eight matches simultaneously, it’s realistically impossible to follow all the matches and place accurate bets on each and every one. For the last sixteen stage, we can watch the games more carefully and hopefully place some informed bets.