It wasn’t too long ago that UEFA was getting nervous about how the Aviva Stadium, and Dublin – on a whole – on a May Wednesday evening, may cope with and accommodate hordes of UK and Ireland-based Liverpool, West Ham or Rangers fans; with all three clubs heavily in the running to contest this year’s Europa League Final.
Dublin was granted only its second ever staging of a major European club football final (the first being the 2011 Europa League Final between FC Porto and Braga) as compensation for it having to bow out as a host city of the 2020 European Championships, due to Covid fears.
But, now with Rangers knocked out and both Liverpool and West Ham staring into the abyss; the bookies are forecasting “hordes” of German and Italian fans descending on Dublin on Wednesday, May 22, instead.
New German champions Bayer Leverkusen – who, over the past weekend, became the first team other than Bayern Munich to win the German Bundesliga in 12 years – are favourites for the Europa League; with Italian team Atalanta currently second favourites.
Those odds will only tighten if both teams finish their quarter-final jobs, this week, against West Ham and Liverpool, respectively. The quarter final second legs take place this Thursday evening (tonight, if you’re reading this on the weekly t2i newsletter); with Bayer up 2-0 on West Ham from the first leg, and Atalanta nursing a 3-0 lead over Liverpool.
The neutrals choice would, arguably, still be a Liverpool v AC Milan final and stranger things have certainly happened in the past…but here are the current betting outlook, for the outright winner of the tournament (with odds from Paddy Power):
Bayer Leverkusen (5/4)
Atalanta (9/2)
AS Roma (6/1)
Benfica (9/1)
Liverpool (12/1)
AC Milan (12/1)
Marseilles (16/1)
West Ham United (25/1)
If Leverkusen and Atalanta were to win their quarter final ties they would face each other in the semi-finals. But, with Leverkusen heavy favourites and one of AC Milan and AS Roma confirmed for the semi finals, it looks like a German-Italian fan fest in Dublin next month.
