Winning on and off the field
German soccer club Bayer Leverkusen reached 50 consecutive games unbeaten across all competitions in what has been one of the most unprecedented seasons for soccer fans and sports bettors.
Xabi Alonso’s group already sealed the Bundesliga title but still has three matches left, including the UEFA Europa League Final and the German DFB Pokal Final.
While their fight for silverware is not quite over, they’ve already made winners out of not just all of their loyal fans, but out of sports bettors everywhere.
Sports bettors win with Leverkusen
Leverkusen was a +3600 underdog to win the Bundesliga, which has been totally dominated by Bayern Munich for decades.
The German giants had won every title since 2012-13 and 19 league titles since 1998-99. Meanwhile, Leverkusen had never finished atop the table and finished in second most recently in 2010-11. They were coming off a sixth-place finish in a year in which they accumulated 50 total points (37 fewer than they currently have with a game still to go).
They matched up with Bayern Munich twice, once drawing 2-2 and later beating them 3-0 in a decisive match for the Bundesliga trophy.
41 wins and nine draws in all competitions
The already-confirmed German champions are only the third team to finish a Bundesliga season unbeaten away from home, joining Bayern in 1986-87 and 2012-13. They have a record of 41 wins and nine draws in all competitions and 27 wins with six draws in the Bundesliga.
They also set the record for the longest unbeaten streak by a European club long held by Benfica, set in 1963-65. Their 2-2 draw with Roma in the UEL on Thursday broke the previous mark of 48 matches.
According to historical odds from Cappertek, a moneyline bet on Leverkusen in every match they played would win bettors 11.45 times their average investment, or 1,145 percent of their usual bet size.
That translates to:
- $5 bets: $57.24
- $10 bets: $114.48
- $20 bets: $228.96
- $50 bets: $572.41
- $100 bets: $1,144.81
- $1,000 bets: $11,448.12
More history beckons
The first of Leverkusen’s three remaining games will take place against FC Augsburg on Saturday, May 18, in the final match week of the Bundesliga.? Augsburg sits 10th in the table with ten wins, nine draws, and 14 losses and a goal difference of -9.
FanDuel sportsbook listed the new champs as a -410 moneyline favorite, meaning a bettor must risk $410 to win $100. There are +500 odds of a draw and +750 of an Augsburg victory.
After that, the German side will face Italian club Atalanta in the UEL Final. FanDuel has Leverkusen as a -125 favorite with +260 odds of a draw and +310 of an Atalanta win.
Their season will conclude with the DFB Pokal Final against Kaiserslautern, who miraculously made it to the competition’s concluding match despite being 15th in 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German soccer.
Leverkusen is an overwhelming -1000 favorite in that match, while the smaller side is a +1600 underdog. There are +700 odds of a draw.
team has a “super goal” to achieve the feat
No team ever finished a Bundesliga season unbeaten. Alonso said his team has a “super goal” to achieve the feat when they match up with Augsburg over the weekend.
The club also has not won the DFB Pokal since its 1992-93 campaign and also did not reach a UEL Final since 1987-88 when it defeated RCD Espanyol.
“We’re off to Dublin and Berlin and we want to grab both titles and go on holiday with the triple in our backpacks,” midfielder Robert Andrich said to DAZN.