The Champions League Dark Horses: Who Arethe 5 Unlikely Teams Who Could Win It?

Take a look at the list of men’s UEFA Champions League winners from the last decade and you’ll see some familiar names. Real Madrid (six-time winners in the last 11 years), Liverpool, and Bayern Munich are teams you’d expect to see at the pinnacle of Europe’s elite, not to mention Manchester City and their new-found wealth. 

Yet 2025 could be different. This is the season that banished four-team groups to the past in favor of a 36-team free-for-all that could yet see some household names fall at the first hurdle (yes, we’re looking at you, Man. City, Real Madrid, and PSG). 

With these giants potentially out of the race, could a smaller team step up and grab glory? Could this be the year of the dark horse?

Let’s take a look at five unlikely candidates for European club football’s ultimate prize.

Brest

At the start of the season, nobody spoke about Brest making a mark on the European football elite. They certainly didn’t appear in any betting odds list for likely tournament and, if they did, even backing them at odds of 150/1 would hardly have been called responsible gambling. 

Those odds, however, have fallen dramatically since. The Ligue Un outfit have been the surprise package of the season so far, recording some big wins as they place themselves in with the frontrunners in the group stage.

They face a battle to retain their place in the top eight for automatic qualification with the knock-outs – their final group game is against Real Madrid, who will also need a win to improve their chances of progressing – but they’re already virtually guaranteed to be seeded should they drop into the play-off positions.

Despite, their erratic league form (they drew only one of their opening 14 games), Brest have the potential to bloody a few noses should they qualify. If they can get through the last 16, then anything could happen.

Lille

Since their shock Ligue 1 win in 2020, Lille have consistently been around the European spots so their qualification for this season’s Champions League was no surprise.

What has raised a few eyebrows, however, is what they’ve done since. Back-to-back wins against the Madrid clubs set them on their way and since then they’ve chalked up a creditable win in Bologna and a battling draw down the road vs Juventus.

Jonathan David has carried on last season’s fine form to continue being the team’s talisman and the team looks settled ahead of a big trip to Anfield in the penultimate group game.

Lille probably need four points from the final two games to be confident of automatic qualification and they’ll certainly fancy their chances.

Aston Villa

When Aston Villa qualified for the Champions League for the first time ever in its current format, many fans saw it as the dawn of a new era under Unai Emery.

The Midlands club have certainly made their mark. A famous win at home to Bayern Munich has been followed up with wins in Leipzig, Switzerland, not to mention a fine win at home to Bologna.

Jhon Duran has perhaps been the stand-out performer – impressive for a youngster – but Emery has built the team around his customary organised defence. 

Their patchy league form is a sore point for Emery, but the fans won’t care if they continue upsetting the odds in the Champions League, where bigger fish wait for them in the knockouts.

Atalanta

Atalanta go from strength to strength this season following a fine campaign last time around. Not only have they been at the pinnacle of Serie A (including a fine winning streak that broke the club record) but they’ve also won all of their Champions League away games, including a 6-1 demolition of Young Boys.

Gian Piero Gasparini’s side have a reputation as the entertainers of the Italian league after chalking a few other large victories this season and they may well be about to serve up further treats for Champions League fans. Keep an eye on their final game at Barcelona as a potential goal fest as they shoot for automatic qualifying.

Atletico Madrid

Despite a blip in which they conceded an uncharacteristic glut of goals in two games vs Benfica and Lille, Atletico have had a solid European campaign in which they’ve recorded wins over PSG, Sparta Prague, RB Leipzig, and Slovan Bratislava.

They look good for the seeded positions for the play-offs but two wins in their final games could see them jump into the automatic spots.

This would be fitting for Diego Simeone’s side who have been on fire in La Liga, losing only one of their opening 17 games to push Barcelona all the way to the top.

The Madrid side famously reached the Champion’s League final in 2014, where they lost to bitter rivals Real, and their fans will be dreaming of a return to the biggest game in European club football 11 years later.