2018 International Champions Cup Odds & Betting Preview

The 2018 International Champions Cup is set to start on July 20. It is a tournament of friendly matches among different football clubs, featuring 18 different sides from six countries, and with venues all over the world, including the United States, Europe and Singapore. Let’s take a look at the overall field, schedule and some suggestions for you as you consider whether or not to add this competition to your soccer betting for the summer.

2018 International Champions Cup Odds & Betting Preview

Chicago, we’re coming! ✈️🇺🇸 #mancity pic.twitter.com/5gOSRF3t03

— Manchester City (@ManCity) July 17, 2018

The teams in the International Champions Cup come from the elite leagues in the world. From the English Premier League come Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. France sends Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain. Germany features Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. From Italy come Inter Milan, Juventus (who just signed Ronaldo), AC Milan and AS Roma. The Portuguese club Benfica will come, as will Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Real Madrid. Here is the match schedule:

Friday, July 20

• Manchester City vs Borussia Dortmund (9:00pm ET, Chicago)

Saturday, July 21

• Bayern Munich vs Paris Saint-Germain (9:30am ET, Klagenfurt)

Sunday, July 22

• Liverpool vs Borussia Dortmund (4:00pm ET, Charlotte, NC)

Wednesday, July 25

• Manchester City vs Liverpool (8:00pm ET, E. Rutherford, NJ)
• Borussia Dortmund vs Benfica (8:00pm ET, Pittsburgh)
• AS Roma vs Tottenham Hotspur (10:00pm ET, San Diego)
• AC Milan vs Manchester United (11:00pm ET, Carson, CA)

Thursday, July 26

• Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal (7:30am ET, Kallang)

Saturday, July 28

• Arsenal vs Paris Saint-Germain (7:30am ET, Kallang)
• Benfica vs Juventus (1:00pm ET, New York City)
• Manchester United vs Liverpool (5:00pm ET, Ann Arbor, MI)
• Bayern Munich vs Manchester City (7:00pm ET, Miami)
• Barcelona vs Tottenham Hotspur (11:00pm ET, Pasadena, CA)

Monday, July 30

• Paris Saint-Germain vs Atletico Madrid (7:30am ET, Kallang)

Tuesday, July 31

• Manchester United vs Real Madrid (8:00pm ET, Miami)
• Tottenham Hotspur vs AC Milan (8:30pm ET, Minneapolis)
• Barcelona vs AS Roma (Arlington, TX)

Wednesday, August 1

• Arsenal vs Chelsea (3:00pm ET, Dublin)
• Benfica vs Lyon (4:00pm ET, Faro-Louie)

Saturday, August 4

• Inter Milan vs Lyon (2:00pm ET, Lecce)
• Real Madrid vs Juventus (6:00pm ET, Landover, MD)
• AC Milan vs Barcelona (8:00pm ET, Santa Clara, CA)

Tuesday, August 7

• Chelsea vs Lyon (3:00pm ET, London)
• Real Madrid vs AS Roma (8:00pm ET, E. Rutherford, NJ)

Sunday, August 12

• Atletico Madrid vs Inter Milan (2:00pm ET, Madrid)

Each team will play three matches, with three points for a win and one point for a draw. The top team in terms of points and tiebreaker will be declared the champion. The tiebreakers, after points, are (in order): head to head points, goal differential, goals scored, points against common opponents, fewer red cards, fewer yellow cards, fewer fouls committed and a coin flip if needed. In the United States, you can find coverage of matches on one of the ESPN channels, while Premier Sports will handle the broadcasts in the UK. For the first trio of games, you can find these odds:

• Manchester United +140 / Draw +225 / Borussia Dortmund +160
• Bayern Munich +100 / Draw +260 / Paris Saint-Germain +200
• Liverpool +115 / Draw +230 / Borussia Dortmund +190

It’s important to remember that, while the teams will be playing to win, these are neutral-site games, and that travel can bring a number of factors that you don’t normally see in club play. There won’t be a home favorite, and league points are not on the line — this is analogous to bowl games that colleges play at the end of the regular football season. So I wouldn’t put as much money on the line for these matches as I might for league play — but these are sure to be fun matches to watch.