We've already had the first leg of the Round of 16 matches. The second legs start this Friday and continue across Saturday and Sunday. The two competition betting favorites Leinster and Racing Metro are in strong positions, but there's plenty to play for elsewhere.
The four-time European Champions Leinster may have only won their first leg by 5 points, but Leo Cullen's team still has the home leg to come. It would amount to a huge shock for the favorites to lose the tie to their United Rugby Championship rivals, Connacht.
As for Racing Metro, they take a massive 13 points lead into their second leg against Stade Français. The French Top 14 team are massive favorites to win both on the day, and the tie overall.
2021/22 Champions Cup Outright Winner Betting
In the latest rugby betting online, to win the 2022 European Champions Cup, Leinster and Racing are the leading teams. The best price on Leinster is +200, with Racing still available at +300.
Defending champions Toulouse are out to +1100 to win the competition after losing the 1st leg of their tie with Ulster by 26 points to 20. The record winners of this competition (Toulouse have 5 Championship wins) have it all to do just to get through to the next round when they visit Northern Ireland on Saturday.
| 2022 European Champions Cup Betting |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Leinster | +200 | +200 |
| Racing 92 | +300 | +200 |
| La Rochelle | +550 | +600 |
| Leicester Tigers | +900 | +1000 |
| Toulouse | +1100 | +1100 |
| Ulster Rugby | +1400 | +1200 |
| Exeter Chiefs | +1600 | +1500 |
| Munster | +1800 | +2000 |
| Montpellier | +2200 | +2000 |
| Bristol | +2500 | +2500 |
| Sale Sharks | +2800 | +3000 |
| Harlequins | +3500 | +3000 |
| Connacht | +20000 | +25000 |
| Clermont | +20000 | +25000 |
| Bordeaux | +20000 | +30000 |
| Stade Francais | +50000 | +40000 |
What Is The European Rugby Champions Cup?
The European Rugby Champions Cup is the premier club rugby tournament in Europe. Club sides from the countries that compete in the Six Nations betting events (France, Italy, England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland) can only take part.
It is the most prestigious and sought-after trophy in European club rugby. As alluded to above, France’s Toulouse is the most successful club in the history of the Champions Cup with five titles. Ireland’s Leinster is next best with four wins.
This season’s format of the competition saw the teams put into two groups, with the top 8 sides from each group qualifying for the Round of 16. At this point, the ties switch to knock-out. The Round of 16 is played over two legs, home and away. After that, it condenses down to straight one-leg matches. The final is to be played at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille, France on May 28th, 2022.
Betting On Rugby
The three main betting lines used in America for general sports betting are the most popular markets for betting on rugby matches.
- Moneyline - A straight bet on who will win the match
- Handicap Spread - The perceived stronger side is given a point advantage by the sportsbook
- Total Points (Over/Under) - The sportsbook names a total amount of points it thinks will be scored in the match, you wager on over or under.
You can also place futures bets on who you think will win competitions, or be top points scorers in the competition, etc.
Champions Cup Betting Picks
One of the most intriguing matchups in the Round of 16 is the all-English affair between Bristol Bears and Sale Sharks. The Bears won the first leg 10-9, and head into the second match as -150 favorites on the Moneyline with BetOnline. They are -188 with MyBookie, suggesting they are overpriced with the former. The Sharks are +130.
- Match; Bristol Bears v Sale Sharks
- Where; Ashton Gate, Bristol, England
- When; Friday, April 15th, 2022
- Time; 3 pm ET
On the handicap, the Sharks are getting a 3.5 point start, and are -128. The Bears with -3.5 points are -112. I’m expecting this to be close, but I like the look of Bristol Bears. They can’t afford to be complacent and defensive as they only have a 1 point lead, so with home advantage, I’m going with the Bristol Bears to win on the handicap.
Please visit our BetOnline Sportsbook Review for more details on this partner.
Moving onto the all-French affair in the second leg on Sunday, one of the tournament favorites Racing Metro (Racing 92) is giving Stade Francais around 20 points on the handicap spread, depending on which sportsbook you are using.
On the Moneyline, Racing is -2000 with BetOnline (MyBookie has them at -5000), showing just how dominant Laurent Travers' side is expected to be over their domestic rivals.
- Match; Racing Metro v Stade Francais
- Where; Paris La Defense Arena, Paris, France
- When; Sunday, April 17th, 2022
- Time; 9.30 am ET
GTBets are offering them at -19.5 on the Handicap Spread, at odds of -118. While Stade Francais are slight favorites at -108 to beat the spread. Racing already has a 13 point lead in the tie, after winning the first leg by 22 points to 9.
Racing has a home advantage, but with a huge lead already, might they take their foot off the gas slightly and save fuel for another day?
That said, I have little confidence in Stade Francais, and with the huge gulf in class, I’m going with the gut feeling that Racing will want to take no chances, and will also want to crush their Parisian rivals, so I’m going for Racing Metro to win on the handicap.
