The first leg of the 2025/26 Champions League play-off tie between Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging (Belgium) and Atletico de Madrid (Spain) will take place on 18 February at the Jan Breydel Stadium. Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging vs Atletico de Madrid: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging
With two rounds to go in the Champions League league phase, Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging were only 31st in the table, but at the most crucial moment the home team ended a five-match winless run and recorded two emphatic victories over Kairat (4:1) and Marseille (3:0). That run lifted the hosts into the play-off places, with the side jumping straight up to 19th. The club will now feature in the Champions League knockout phase for the second year running and for the third time in the last four seasons. It is worth noting that in this European campaign the Belgian outfit have conceded 17 goals in total — among the teams still in the tournament, only Qarabag (21) have a worse record in that regard.
- Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging have avoided defeat in five of their last six home Champions League matches (four wins, one draw).
- The team have scored in seven of their last eight home games in this tournament.
- The Belgian side have conceded at least two goals in five of their last seven Champions League matches.
Potential Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging Lineup (4-5-1)
Nordin Jackers – Kyriani Sabbe, Brandon Mechele, Joel Ordonez, Joaquin Seys – Aleksandar Stankovic, Carlos Borges, Hans Vanaken, Mamadou Diakhon, Hugo Vetlesen – Romeo Vermant.
Midfielder Lynnt Audoor and goalkeeper Dani van den Heuvel are both on the club’s injury list.
Atletico de Madrid
The Spaniards’ league-phase campaign was something of a rollercoaster. After a difficult start, Atletico de Madrid pulled themselves together and won three straight Champions League matches, but then suffered another dip in form which brought just one point from the final two rounds. In their previous outing, the away team suffered a surprise home defeat to Bodo/Glimt (1:2), bringing their four-match unbeaten run in the Champions League to an end. As a result, the club failed to make the top eight and finished 14th in the table. Atletico de Madrid will be playing in the knockout phase of this European competition for the 11th time in the last 13 seasons.
- In this Champions League campaign, the Spaniards have yet to keep a clean sheet.
- The club have not won four of their last five away matches in this tournament (one draw, three defeats).
- Both teams have scored in five of Atletico de Madrid’s last six away games in the Champions League.
Potential Atletico de Madrid Lineup (4-4-2)
Jan Oblak – Marcos Llorente, Marc Pubill, David Hancko, Matteo Ruggeri – Johnny Cardoso, Koke, Thiago Almada, Giuliano Simeone – Alexander Sorlot, Julian Alvarez.
Midfielder Pablo Barrios will miss out through injury.
Referee
Glenn Nyberg (Sweden)
Matches – 8 (international fixtures, 2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second cautions) – 28;
Yellow cards per match on average – 3.5;
Red cards shown – 2;
Fouls per match on average – 22;
Penalties – 13%.
Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging vs Atletico de Madrid: Match Prediction
This tie brings together two teams whose matches are regularly marked by high scoring. For instance, all eight of Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging’s previous league-phase games in the Champions League finished over the total. More broadly, at least three goals have been scored in 11 straight matches involving the Belgian side in this European competition. The same three-goal mark has been cleared in each of the club’s last eight home Champions League matches.
As for Atletico de Madrid, only one of their eight games in this Champions League season failed to go over. Over the league phase, matches involving the Spaniards produced an average of exactly four goals per game — the same figure recorded by Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging. In addition, in nine of the visitors’ last 10 away matches in the Champions League, we have also seen at least three goals.
The signs point towards Club Brugge Koninklijke Voetbalvereniging and Atletico de Madrid producing another entertaining contest.
Prediction: Over 2.5 goals
