UEFA Cup Betting and Football Tournament

Information

The UEFA Cup is one of Europe’s oldest inter-league football tournaments. The competition is the successor of the Inter Cities Fairs Cup that was organised in the 1950’s to promote trade fairs and inter-European club competition.

UEFA Cup Betting

Football betting is a great way to test your knowledge of European football and add spice to the encounters between Europe’s top clubs. As the UEFA Cup season progresses UEFA Cup betting markets become active and pundits watch the performances of teams closely to see which teams will offer them the best returns on their money.

A host of Europe’s top clubs will be competing in the 2007/2008 UEFA Club. Check out the UEFA Cup Betting Tips and Favourites page on this site for a brief look at football betting and this season’s favourites.

UEFA Cup History

Originally the UEFA Cup football tournament, as well as the Fairs Cup, was intended to give runners-up in domestic European football leagues the opportunity to contest a tournament on the European stage. For this reason the competition was often called the ‘Runners Up Cup’, a lable that failed to reflect that many of Europe’s most exciting and skilful clubs competed in the tournament.

In 1971 the Inter Cities Fairs Cup was taken over by UEFA. The competition was given a new format and trophy and set up as the official counterpart to the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup. In 1999, the Cup Winners’ Cup was absorbed into the UEFA Cup making it the official knockout tournament for European domestic cup winners.

UEFA Cup Qualifying and Format

The UEFA Cup has a somewhat complex format and qualifying procedure. Apart from hosting Europe’s domestic cup winners, the tournament is also designed to give teams that have performed well in domestic leagues a chance to show their skills on a grander stage. Champions League dropouts are also given a second chance at winning a trophy and are added to the tournament during later stages.

The format of the football tournament undergoes continual revision as UEFA attempts to give more clubs exposure to European competition. The proposal tabled most recently is that the UEFA Champions League incorporate domestic cup winners – a suggestion not met with much enthusiasm by UEFA Cup officials and fans.