Conference League winner odds: Crystal Palace favourites for European silverware

Conference League winner odds: Crystal Palace favourites for European silverware. Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. 18+. T&Cs apply. GambleAware.org

THE 2025/26 UEFA Europa Conference League looks set to be the most open since the competition began in 2021.

Unlike in its previous four seasons, this year’s edition has no so-called big club from one of Europe’s top leagues. As a result, the tournament is packed with mid-ranking teams from many leagues across Europe all hoping to make a name for themselves and win a major European trophy.

Among the teams looking to taste glory are English FA Cup winners Crystal Palace. The Eagles – who were named the favourites in the opening Conference League winner odds – will finally get a taste of major European action after a couple of near misses over the past few decades.

Palace will face stiff competition from Fiorentina of Italy, with Strasbourg and Rayo Vallecano also expected to pose a threat.

Quick Conference League betting tips

* Fiorentina to win the trophy – 11/2 with Betway

* Shakhtar Donetsk to reach the final – 9/2 with bet365

2025/26 Conference League winner odds

* Crystal Palace – 5/1 with bet365

* Fiorentina – 11/2 with Betway

* Strasbourg – 7/1 with BetMGM

* Rayo Vallecano – 9/1 with William Hill

* Shakhtar Donetsk – 10/1 with Spreadex

* Mainz – 10/1 with Betway

* AZ Alkmaar – 10/1 with SBK

* AEK Athens – 20/1 with talkSPORT BET

* Dynamo Kiev – 20/1 with Betfred

* Rapid Vienna – 25/1 with BetMGM

* Sparta Prague – 25/1 with bet365

* Lech Poznań – 33/1 with William Hill

* Samsunspor – 33/1 with Betfred

* Legia Warsaw – 33/1 with Betway

* Raków Częstochowa – 40/1 with talkSPORT BET

* Jagiellonia Białystok – 40/1 with Spreadex

* CS Universitatea Craiova – 50/1 with bet365

* Sigma Olomouc – 66/1 with talkSPORT BET

* Omonia Nicosia – 66/1 with bet365

* BK Häcken – 70/1 with BetMGM

* AEK Larnaca – 80/1 with Spreadex

* HNK Rijeka – 90/1 with SBK

* Lausanne-Sport – 100/1 with William Hill

* Slovan Bratislava – 100/1 with Spreadex

* Aberdeen – 100/1 with talkSPORT BET

* NK Celje – 150/1 with Betfred

* Breiðablik – 180/1 with SBK

* Zrinjski – 200/1 with bet365

* Shamrock Rovers – 200/1 with William Hill

* KuPS – 250/1 with BetMGM

* Noah – 280/1 with SBK

* KF Drita – 400/1 with Betway

* Shelbourne – 500/1 with talkSPORT BET

* FK Shkëndija 79 – 500/1 with William Hill

* Hamrun Spartans – 750/1 with Spreadex

* Lincoln Red Imps – 1000/1 with Betfred

Odds provided by our favourite betting sites in the UK are subject to change.

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Conference League winner – betting favourites

Crystal Palace and Fiorentina look the teams to beat in this season’s competition. They are the two favourites in the early 2025/26 Europa Conference League winner odds. Below we take a closer look at both, along with the other teams likely to be in with a chance of glory:

Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace ended up in the UEFA Conference League via the unlikeliest of routes.

The Eagles originally qualified for the Europa League after they defeated Manchester City 1-0 in the FA Cup final. Palace then fell foul of UEFA ownership rules, and despite legal disputes, they were demoted to the Conference League.

The other negative for the Eagles is they also lost the services of Eberechi Eze, the man who played the most significant role in getting them into Europe. The England forward left to join Arsenal.

However, Palace fans shouldn’t be too disheartened. Yes, it would have been nice to be rubbing shoulders with bigger names in the Europa League. But unlike in the more competitive second tier UEFA competition, the Eagles have a real chance of winning this one.

Fiorentina

Fiorentina have unfinished business in the Conference League. The Viola were the beaten finalists in 2023. They had their hearts broken by Jarrod Bowen’s 90th minute winner for West Ham – in a game that the Italians believe they should have won.

Fiorentina had double West Ham’s shots on goal and dominated possession with 63 percent of the ball. However, the Viola were wasteful in front of goal and the Hammers made them pay.

Fiorentina qualified by finishing sixth in Serie A last season on goal difference ahead of Lazio. They did briefly flirt with the top four, and many feel that the best football betting sites may have got their odds wrong in naming Palace as their favourites ahead of the Italians.

Strasbourg

English football fans will be familiar with Strasbourg head coach Liam Rosenior. The 41-year-old took charge in 2024, replacing former Palace boss Patrick Vieira, who left by mutual consent.

Further domestic interest can be found in Chelsea youngster Mamadou Sarr who is on loan to Strasbourg, who also happen to be part of the BlueCo group that also own last season’s Conference League winners.

Strasbourg is backed by owners with deep pockets and big things are expected. Don’t be shocked if they back Rosenior in January if a trophy win looks possible. This will make the French outfit more dangerous in the knockout stages.

Rayo Vallecano

The minnows from Madrid punched above their weight last season, finishing eighth in the La Liga, guaranteeing themselves a place in the Conference League playoffs. The Red Sashes confirmed their place in the 36-team group stage with a comfortable 5-0 aggregate win over Neman.

This is only Vallecano’s second European adventure after they previously reached the quarter-final of the 2000/01 UEFA Cup.

Vallecano’s head coach Iñigo Pérez was apparently sounded out by Nottingham Forest ahead of their appointment of Ange Postecoglou. The 37-year-old is making a name for himself and there is every possibility he could find himself in the Premier League before long.

If Pérez leaves, there is every chance Vallecano’s campaign could quickly derail.

Mainz

Mainz sat third in the Bundesliga last March and were dreaming of a first ever appearance in the Champions League. Unfortunately for Bo Henriksen’s team, their form tailed off and they had to settle for sixth in the table.

However, it was still a solid season in the German top flight and a vast improvement on their 13th place in the previous season.

Whether they have the strength in depth to compete on two fronts is the key question. They should have no problem qualifying given the quality of the teams in this competition. But it remains to be seen how the Germans will get on in the knockout stages.

Shakhtar Donetsk

After eight successive seasons in the Champions League, this will be Shakhtar Donetsk’s first ever appearance in the Conference League.

The Ukrainians only managed a third place finish in their domestic Premier League last season. This resulted in them needing to take part in the Europa League qualifiers.

Six matches later, Shakhtar were out, but they did have the safety net of a chance to qualify for the Conference League.

Shakhtar defeated Servette 3-2 on aggregate to take their place in the group stage. With all their Champions League experience and pedigree, we suspect Arda Turan’s side are being underestimated by the bookmakers. They are 9/1 to lift the cup in the latest UEFA Conference League winner odds.

AZ Alkmaar

This is AZ Alkmaar’s seventh successive season in European competition. The Dutchmen have a consistent record in this competition, with their semi-final defeat to West Ham in 2023, their standout performance.

With all their European experience, Maarten Martens’ team should be well equipped to challenge for the trophy this season.

De Kaasboeren are led by former Tottenham forward Troy Parrott. The Irishman enjoyed a good campaign in the Netherlands last year, scoring 14 goals in his 28 Eredivisie appearances. He has picked up from where he left off in the current campaign.

A place in the knockout stages looks a formality for AZ. Once there, they will have as good a chance as anyone.

Conference League – teams flying under the radar

Amongst all the minnows, there are some big European names from the past involved in the Conference League. Teams like Rapid Vienna, AEK Athens, Sparta Prague and Legia Warsaw are all involved in this season’s competition.

Rapid Vienna got off to a flying start in the Austrian Bundesliga and they may be worth keeping an eye on. Vienna are 25/1 to win the competition and 11/1 to reach the final. A Matchday 2 meeting with Fiorentina is the most difficult group match Peter Stöger’s team will encounter.

AEK Athens are another team worth keeping tabs on. The Greeks secured their place with a 3-1 aggregate playoff win over Anderlecht. Like Vienna, Athens has a favourable draw. And also like Vienna, Fiorentina look set to be their most tricky opponents in their six matches.

The Greeks are 22/1 to win the Conference League and 10/1 to reach the final.

A reminder of the new Conference League format

All three UEFA club competitions were revamped ahead of the 2024/25 season. The formats are almost the same in all three, but there is a slight difference between the Conference League and other two competitions.

All three now have a 36-team group. In the Champions League and Europa Leagues, all 36 teams play eight matches in the group. However, in the Conference League, all 36 teams play just six matches.

The top eight qualify directly for the Round of 16. The teams in positions 9-16 will then face one of the teams in positions 17-24 in a playoff for the final eight places in the Round of 16.

However, with the Conference League teams only playing six games each (as opposed to eight), if any of the favourites are slow to get started, it could lead to some outsiders gatecrashing the top eight.

Other Conference League betting markets

Despite having the lowest profile of the three UEFA competitions, the bookmakers still offer plenty of Conference League betting markets. A selection of the most popular follows:

To reach the final

Instead of picking a team to win the tournament, you can play safer and select one just to reach the final. This market pays less, but if your team falls at the last hurdle in the final at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig, you wager still wins.

Stage of elimination

This market allows you to place a wager on when you think a team’s Conference League journey will end. So if you think that a minnow like Shamrock Rovers won’t make it past the group, you bet on them to be eliminated at the group stage.

You can also bet on a team to be eliminated in any of the knockout rounds as well.

League stage winner & league stage top 8

A bet on the league stage winner is a wager on who finishes top of the 36-team group at the end of their six matches. Crystal Palace and Fiorentina lead the betting in this market.

It is also possible to place a wager on a team to finish in the top eight. This is where the good value bets on the outsiders can come into play.

👇 My Conference League betting tips

The latest Conference League odds winner markets suggest a tightly contested tournament with Crystal Palace and Fiorentina the most likely winners. The bookies look to be on the right track in my view. Below is my betting tips:

Fiorentina to win the trophy

Fiorentina have come close on two occasions already to winning this competition. The Viola know they are one of the best teams taking part and they also know that this represents a great chance for some European silverware.

Crystal Palace are likely to represent the biggest threat to the Italians. And even though the Eagles have started the season well, I can see them falling away. Oliver Glasner’s team have also lost Eberechi Eze to Arsenal, and he was by far their biggest threat.

⚽ Back Fiorentina to win the 2025/26 Conference League at 11/2 with Betway ⚽

Shakhtar Donetsk to reach the final

It will probably feel like something of a culture shock for Shakhtar Donetsk to find themselves in the third tier of European competition having spent so many seasons competing in the Champions League.

However, once Arda Turan’s team settle into the competition they should quickly recognise the huge opportunity they have to land themselves a major European trophy.

Qualification from the group will be no problem, and I fully expect the Ukrainians to finish in the top eight and head straight to the Round of 16. Over two legs in the knockout stages they will have the beating of anyone and it wouldn’t shock me to see them in the final, or even lifting the trophy.

⚽ Back Shakhtar Donetsk to reach the final of the 2025/26 Conference League at 9/2 with bet365 ⚽

A look at the previous iterations of the Conference League

The 2025 edition of the Conference League will be only the fifth ever held. But despite the competition’s brief history, it has already created some remarkable stories with less fashionable teams claiming European glory.

Roma were the first ever winners of the competition. Their 1-0 win over Feyenoord in the 2021/22 final gave José Mourinho the complete set of all the three major club trophies.

Twelve months later West Ham became the first English team to get their hands on UEFA’s newest trophy. Jarrod Bowen was the match winner with his deciding goal coming after 90 minutes and breaking Fiorentina hearts.

The Viola were again the runners-up in the 2023/24 final. This time they lost to a goal from Ayoub El Kaabi of Olympiacos with just four minutes of extra-time remaining. It’s hard to know which of the two defeats was the most distressing for the Italians.

The most recent team to get their hands on the trophy was Premier League giants Chelsea.

The Londoners did trail Betis for just under an hour in the final, but an inspired second half performance saw Enzo Maresca’s team fight back to win 4-1 and become the first team to win all three of UEFA’s current main three trophies.

FAQs about the 2025/26 Conference League campaign

For more information about the 2025/26 Conference League, check out our FAQ section below:

1. How many games do teams now play in the revamped Conference League format?

A total of 36 teams take part in the revamped UEFA Conference League. All teams play six group games each, with three at home and three away.

2. How many qualification spots are given to teams outside Europe’s major leagues?

Teams from all UEFA associations ranked from 6 to 55 can qualify for the Conference League.

There are teams from the big five of the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Serie A and Ligue 1, but the majority of the teams are made up from leagues outside of these nations.

The idea is that teams who can’t make it to the Champions League or Europa League from lower coefficient ranking leagues have a chance at tasting European glory.

3. Do teams with more strength in depth tend to fare better in the Conference League?

Yes, it is now nearly always the case that the teams with more money have the bigger squads and therefore can rotate their team and still win games against the smaller teams.

This will favour teams like Crystal Palace, Fiorentina and Mainz in this season’s competition.

4. How far might a team travel to play their six league phase games, and does this lead to upsets?

With teams from more obscure UEFA nations taking part in the Conference League, it is not unheard of for some away teams to have to travel thousands of miles across Europe to the edge of Asia. Such fixtures can cause fatigue and lead to upsets.

FC Noah of Armenia is one of the longest away trips in this season’s competition. No one will want to make that trip, thankfully for the betting favorites, they’ve all managed to avoid that potential banana skin.

📖 Read more about the 2025/26 football season

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