Nice vs Benfica: UEFA Champions League Prediction (06.08.2025)

In the early hours of Wednesday, August 6 at 21:00 CET at the Allianz Riviera Stadium in Nice, the local football club will host Benfica Lisbon in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the 2025-2026 UEFA Champions League. The French side start from this stage as the fourth-placed team of last season’s Ligue 1. The Portuguese side begin their European campaign from this round as runners-up of the Primeira Liga.

In the Nice – Benfica clash, bookmakers’ predictions lean in favour of the Portuguese representatives. A win for the “Les Aiglons” in the first match is offered at odds of 2.92, and to qualify for the next round of the Champions League – 3.05. For the “Reds,” the odds in the same markets are 2.33 and 1.38 respectively. The first meeting is expected to be tense and open: total over 2.5 goes for 1.68, while both teams to score is priced at 1.56.

Nice

Franck Haise’s team performed quite well in last season’s French championship, but missed out on bronze after losing 0-2 away to Rennes in the penultimate round. That defeat cost them not only a medal chance but also direct entry into the main stage of the Champions League. Now they are faced with a tough task – first having to get past one of the Portuguese giants.

To prepare for the season, “Les Aiglons” played a series of friendly matches. Over the past month they managed to play six fixtures. Among their opponents were serious clubs such as Feyenoord, St. Pauli, and Sheffield United.

Benfica

Bruno Lage’s team, on the other hand, enjoyed plenty of competitive practice this summer. First, the “Eagles” flew to America for the Club World Cup where they reached the round of 16 but lost in extra time to eventual champions Chelsea. Then, at the end of July, the Lisbon side managed to secure the first trophy of the season. In the match with Sporting, one goal was enough for the “Reds” to win the Portuguese Super Cup.

In the Super Cup match, special mention should be made of the solid performance of the defence and Ukrainian goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin. Last season, the goalkeeper repeatedly rescued his team, and at the Club World Cup he kept two clean sheets, including one against Bayern Munich.

Stats and Head-to-Head Record

In the summer of 2022, Benfica beat Nice 3-0 in a friendly match. The teams have never met in European competitions.

Prediction

Benfica strive to be as reliable as possible in defence, which is especially important in an away match. Take Nice individual total under 1.5 at odds of 1.59.