Betting on the French Ligue 1, who has never tried it? Recently baptised as Ligue 1 Conforma for sponsorship reasons (and soon to be Ligue 1 Uber Eats), this is the first division of football in France and is a favourite of sports betting fans from around the world. Taking place over 38 match days in which 20 of the top French clubs compete for the title of French Champions, there are plenty of legendary clubs involved in this football championship. Saint-Étienne, for example, are the most-titled club in the league, and who can forget that Olympique Lyonnais have won the most consecutive titles (2002-2008). Paris Saint-Germain are the current title holders, and will be one of the favourites to retain their title at the end of the 2019/20 season - and will likely be a base for your sports bets every weekend.
The fifth-best European football championship according to UEFA rankings, Ligue 1 is developing and growing year after year to become the stage of a fierce battle between all of the teams involved. As well as the title of French champions, Ligue 1 also offers three Champions League spots and two Europa League places to the teams that finish at the top of the table (with an additional two qualifying places offered to the winners of the Coupe de France and Coupe de la Ligue). It’s all to play for on the fields of France in the upcoming season, so don’t be surprised to see plenty of action before May 2020.
In order to establish reliable predictions on Ligue 1, it is necessary to keep on top of all the current statistics and figures in the league as it can help you to determine the trends of each season. Contrary to popular belief, the French football championship is progressing year after year, with more goal scorers every season. While the figures might not equal the likes of the Premier League the difference is not as big as it was a few years ago - so avoid any prejudices that could mislead you when betting on Ligue 1, as it could put your potential earnings at risk.
When we look at the example of the 2018/19 season, we can see that nearly half of all games in the championship saw three goals scored - 48% to be exact. Should this figure continue to increase in the 2019/20 season, we could see this ratio increase to almost once every two games. As teams in Ligue 1 begin to favour offensive tactics more and more every year, a prediction on the ‘Over 2.5’ goals market might be one to keep in mind.
In terms of goals, we also saw that 972 goals were scored over the 28 days of the 2018/19 season. The Parisians and the Lyonnais were certainly key in advancing the figure, and the championship as a whole. With the average goal per game ratio falling at around 2.60, goals predictions on Ligue 1 could well be an enticing prospect for the upcoming season.
Last season also saw another relentless trend that could prove to be interesting for your sports bets: it is very difficult to secure an away win in the French football championship. With a very low average of only 28% of games last season, the away sides seem to struggle in particular in France. PSG and Lyon seem to be the only exception to this rule, and make up a large percentage of this statistic. In other words, it will be better to bet on the success of the hosts in Ligue 1 - the advice of the experts.
After being crowned champions in the 2018/19 season, PSG should be the favourites to defend their title in 2020. Despite expected competition from the likes of OL, LOSC and OM, the Parisians seem to stand above the rest considering their lineup. If all goes well, Thomas Tuchel’s men should again raise the Ligue 1 trophy in May 2020 - and provide you with more than one winning prediction over the course of the upcoming season.
Winner: Paris Saint-Germain successfully defended their title in the French Ligue 1 in 2019, marking their eighth title win in the club’s history. The Parisians are now the third most decorated team in this top-tier French Football league, behind Saint-Étienne (10) and Marseille (9).
European Football: Alongside PSG, Lille and Lyon qualified for the 2019/20 Champions League, having finished in second- and third-place. Fourth place Saint-Étienne achieved qualification for the Europa League, alongside tenth-place Rennes, while Strasbourg will enter the EL in the second qualifying round.
Relegated: Two teams were relegated from Ligue 1 this season. As the bottom two finishers in the league, Caen and Guingamp will join Ligue 2 next season, while 18th place Dijon were victorious in the Relegation Playoffs, thus managing to hold on to their Ligue 1 spot.
Promoted: The first- and second-place finishers of Ligue 2 succeeded in securing promotion to the top-tier of French football for the 2019/20 season - Metz and Brest. Fifth-place Lens were beaten by Dijon in the Playoffs, and as such will remain in Ligue 2 next season.
Check out all bets on the 2019/20 Ligue 1!
