It may be regarded as the weaker sibling to the UEFA Champions League, but there’s still plenty to play for in the Europa League… not least an automatic invite to next season’s UCL.

Before the knockout stage comes the league phase – and getting off to a good start with a win on Matchday 1 is just what the doctor ordered.

Here’s our Europa League betting tips for the Week 1 fixtures, which have kick-off times ranging from 03:45 to 06:00 AEST on Thursday September 17.

Quick Picks

Our pick: Bayer Leverkusen -1 Handicap

Value bet: Rennes to Win

Long shot: Union St Gilloise to Win

Betting Preview

The Europa League is a fascinating competition to try and unravel as a punter.

You have some fallen giants of European football – AC Milan, Juventus and Marseille amongst them – alongside up-and-coming teams like Bournemouth, Red Bull Salzburg and NEC Nijmegen.

Throw in some curveballs from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia and you’ve got yourself the recipe for a tasty cocktail of excitement. If you are new to these competitions, it is worth reading up on betting on European soccer before you dive in.

Betting Markets to Watch

There’s 18 Europa League fixtures taking place on Matchday 1:

Omonoia v Celta (Thursday, September 17, 02:45 AEST)

Ararat-Armenia v Sparta Praha (Thursday, September 17, 02:45 AEST)

Olympiacos v Jagiellonia Bialystol (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

Anderlecht v OL (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

Leverkusen v Celje (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

Sunderland v AZ Alkmaar (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

AC Milan v Benfica (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

Sturm Graz v Rennes (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

H. Beer-Sheva v Dinamo Zagreb (Thursday, September 17, 05:00 AEST)

Levski Sofia v RB Salzburg (Friday, September 18, 02:45 AEST)

OFI v Hoffenheim (Friday, September 18, 02:45 AEST)

Celtic v Ferencvaros (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Juventus v NEC (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Viktoria Plzen v Union St Gilloise (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Besiktas v Marseille (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Lillestrom v Torreense (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Crystal Palace v Lech Poznan (Friday, September 18, 05:00 AEST)

Clearly, some hold more value than others for punters, with Bayer Leverkusen’s home date with Slovenian side NK Celje immediately catching the eye.

The Germans have been in attacking form this term. Yes, they might have lost to Elversberg on the opening day of the Bundesliga season, but they crafted six ‘big chances’ from 21 shots and 40 touches in the opposition’s box.

They pretty much repeated it next time out: this time winning 4-0 against Union Berlin, with 21 shots, 49 touches in the opposition box and five big chances. In Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Augsburg, they managed 23 shots.

NK Celje, meanwhile, have won just 3/8 in the Slovenian top-flight so far, including a 2-1 defeat at the weekend. As such, Leverkusen with a -1 handicap is backed up by some stats.

Another interesting match-up sees Sturm Graz host Rennes. The Austrians have played six Bundesliga games so far, winning three with a goal difference of a lowly +2.

With just two wins in eight Europa League games last term, Sturm Graz clearly didn’t take to the competition. So preference is for Matchday 1 opponents Rennes, who were 2-0 up for more than half-an-hour against the European champions PSG recently.

Unbeaten in four Ligue 1 starts, Rennes are more progressive than Sturm Graz and can be backed to win in Austria.

Meanwhile, Union St Gilloise have won five of their opening six Belgian Pro League games, drawing the other, scoring 19 goals and conceding three.

On Europa League Matchday 1, they travel to take on a Viktoria Plzen side that has been far from their best in Czechia, winning two of their opening six games and conceding 12 goals.

The Belgians, somewhat surprisingly, are the underdogs for this contest.

That doesn’t seem quite right, so Union St Gilloise to continue their fine form by prevailing over Plzen looks good. If you are unsure how the win-draw-win market works, it is worth getting across the basics before backing an outright winner.

Our Prediction

You can browse the latest Europa League betting odds at Sportsbet.

Our predictions for week one of the Europa League focus on Bayer Leverkusen, who should have too much firepower for NK Celje, as well as (hopefully) away wins for Rennes and Union St Gilloise .