Another season of the CAF Champions League concluded a few days ago. The competition’s most decorated team, the Egyptian giants’ Al Ahly, failed to win their 11th title and third straight after losing to the Moroccan side Wydad AC, who won their third title with a 2-0 victory.
In the following article, we will explain how the CAF Champions League works and will give you the top tips and predictions for the competition. Here, you can also find out more about the best betting sites in South Africa to bet on the CAF Champions League.
CAF Champions League Season Preview
What is the CAF Champions League?
Run by the Confederation of African Football and formerly known as the African Cup of Champion Clubs, the CAF Champions League is an annual continental club football competition, the strongest in Africa. The competition’s growing popularity started attracting numerous sponsors such as Orange, QNET, and 1xBet, and at the moment, the official name of this tournament is the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League.
The structure of the CAF Champions League is pretty much the same as other continental competitions around the world. It works as a knockout competition, with a final group stage, with each game (excluding the final, of course) played over two legs – home and away. The preliminary stage and the first round, which consists of 32 teams, make two knockout stages.
The 16 teams eliminated out of the first round are going to the CAF Confederation Cup to face the final 16 clubs in that competition – similar to the UEFA Champions League and Europa League. Following the first round, the last 16 teams are divided into four groups of four. The first two teams in these groups will qualify for the quarter-final, while the bottom two will be eliminated from the competition.
Top Teams and Key Players in CAF Champions League
As of now, the most successful team in the CAF Champions League is Al Ahly from Cairo with ten titles. They were hoping to get their third trophy in a row this season, but Wydad AC were better in the final and celebrated a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Zouheir El Moutaraji.
Alongside Al Ahly, Zamalek and TP Mazembe are the strongest teams in the competition with five titles apiece. Espérance Sportive de Tunis has four, while Hafia FC, Wydad Casablanca, Raja Casablanca, and Canon Yaounde won three titles each.
Last season, the clubs from North Africa dominated the competition as six of eight quarter-finalists came from that part of the continent. Traditionally, the teams from Northern Africa are the best in this tournament, with Egypt being the most successful country with 16 titles in total. The Union of North African Football or UNAF produced 34 winners of the CAF Champions League, followed by the UNIFFAC (Central Africa) with 12 and WAFU (West Africa) with ten titles.
There are a lot of key and recognizable players in the CAF Champions League, but one of the most influential is Percy Tau. The South African forward is not only the best player in his country but one of the best in all of Africa.
Although he failed to win the title in his first season at Al Ahly, Tau won the competition back in the 2015-16 season with Mamelodi Sundowns, the South African outfit. In ten games this season in the CAF Champions League, Tau contributed three goals and five assists and was the best player in the knockout stage with two goals and four assists.
here to find betting odds for the CAF Champions League?
Almost every relevant bookmaker on the planet has the CAF Champions League included in its offer, so it’s pretty easy to find betting odds for the CAF Champions League.
Just check out some of the most popular betting sites in Africa, and if you are from the southern part of the continent, you can choose from numerous best betting sites in South Africa.
Top tips and predictions for CAF Champions League
Best Defending Teams
In the group stage of the 2021-22 campaign, Mamelodi Sundowns, Raja Casablanca, and Esperance Tunis were the best defending teams in the competition with just two goals conceded in six games apiece.
Thanks to such sturdy defences, Mamelodi Sundowns and Esperance Tunis finished the group phase as the only undefeated teams. Later in the knockout stage, Wydad Casablanca allowed only two goals in five games and deservedly won their third title.
Obviously, the “both teams to score predictions for tomorrow” betting option when these two teams played would offer low odds on the “NO” pick. Keep in mind these facts and stats as they could prove to be crucial in your betting success.
Worst Defending Teams
Talking about the worst defending teams of the CAF Champions League, Botswana’s champions Jwaneng Galaxy were dreadful at the back as they allowed a whopping 17 goals in the group stage and were one of three teams without a win. Only the Sudanese side Al-Merreikh conceded a double-digit number of goals (11) alongside Jwaneng Galaxy.
Best Attacking Teams
Wydad Casablanca, who closed the group stage with four wins in a row and later went on to win the CAF Champions League, were the best-attacking team last year. The Moroccan team scored 15 goals, three more than Esperance Tunis and five more than Mamelodi Sundowns and CR Belouizdad. Wydad added seven more goals in the knockout stage, but that part of the competition belonged to Al Ahly, at least when we talk about goals, as they scored nine.
Worst Attacking Teams
All 16 teams of the group stage-managed to score at least a goal, but the Angolan team Sagrada proved to be the most inefficient in the competition with just one goal in six games. Zamalek, who surprisingly failed to record a single win and scored a miserable three goals, are also among the worst attacking teams, as well as AmaZulu (three goals).
Top Scorers
Tiago Azulao, the Brazilian striker who plays for Petro de Luanda, was the competition’s top scorer with six goals, four of which he scored in the group stage. Zouheir El Moutaraji, who bagged a brace in the CAF Champions League final and brought a title to Wydad, finished the season with five goals, while Mohamed Ben Romdhane added four, all four in the group stage. His Esperance Tunis failed to find the back of the net over two legs in the quarter-final against ES Setif.
Top Assistants
Esperance Tunis’ midfielder Sabir Bougrine was the best assist-maker in the group stage with four assists. Jaredi out of Petro Atletico had three, but Percy Tau dominated in the knockouts with four assists alongside two goals. Still, his creativity didn’t help his team in the final as Al Ahly lost to Wydad.
How to bet on CAF Champions League picks?
Betting on the CAF Champions League is straightforward and it’s just like betting on every other league in the world. All you need to do is go to your favourite betting site, select the game you want to put your bet on, and make your pick. There are a lot of betting tips and tricks to be found around when it comes to the CAF Champions League, but if you’re into Nigerian football, you can also find some of the best NPFL betting tips that will make your betting selections much easier.
What are the best betting markets for CAF Champions League?
Normally, the most popular and the best betting markets for the CAF Champions League are:
- Match Result (1 X 2)
- Double Chance
- Total Goals (Over/Under)
- BTTS
- Half time/Full time
- Asian Handicap
- Goalscorers
- Score Predictions
There is plenty to choose from, and certainly one of the most attractive betting markets for the CAF Champions League is for both teams to score predictions.
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