Will Freiburg take advantage of Nice’s European cup phobia?
A total of four teams are still without points after three matchdays in the Europa League. In addition to Glasgow Rangers and RB Salzburg, this also applies to OGC Nice. Although they could have achieved more in all of their matches and were always just one goal away from earning a point, the southern French team already has its back against the wall at this early stage of the EL league phase and must earn three points against SC Freiburg on Thursday evening in order to stay in contention for the playoff spots. However, ahead of Nice’s game against Freiburg, betting on the home side once again carries a relatively high risk.
This is primarily due to the visitors from the Bundesliga, who, with seven points from their first three matches and sixth place in the standings, are making the trip to the Côte d’Azur completely worry-free. Looking at Freiburg’s remaining schedule, with games against Viktoria Plzen, RB Salzburg, and Maccabi Tel Aviv still to play, it even seems possible that they could secure a direct ticket to the round of 16 of the second most important club competition. This is especially true if the prediction for the Sport-Club comes true on Thursday evening at the Allianz Riviera, the home ground of the Eagles, between Nice and Freiburg.
The main strength of coach Julian Schuster’s team is its stable defense, which has conceded more than one goal in only two of the last eleven competitive games. In three Europa League matches, the back line around goalkeeper Noah Atubolu has conceded just two goals. Also interesting: in six of the last eight competitive matches involving SCF, a maximum of two goals were scored. In almost 50% of Les Aiglons’ Ligue 1 matches, a bet on under 2.5 goals would have been successful.
Accordingly, I think it makes sense to bet on a maximum of two goals being scored in the game between Nice and Freiburg.
Even in the respective dress rehearsals for both teams, the score was still 0-0 after 45 minutes. Nice ultimately lost 1-0 to Paris St. Germain after conceding a last-minute goal, while Grifo and Co. had to settle for a goalless draw at Union Berlin.
Nice – Freiburg Head-to-head record
This is the first ever meeting between Nice and Freiburg. However, it is by no means the first match against a German Bundesliga representative for the hosts from southern France. Since 1973, “Le Gym” has faced clubs from Germany nine times and has failed to win any of those nine matches (0-3-6). In contrast, the Sport-Club has a very successful record against clubs from France. In a total of four European Cup games, the Breisgauers have recorded three wins and one draw.
Nice – Freiburg Tip
While OGC Nice recently started a comeback in their domestic Ligue 1 with good results and, after three wins in a row, lost only narrowly 0-1 at the Parc des Princes to Champions League winners Paris St. Germain at the weekend, things just aren’t working out for them on the international stage.
The Eagles have now gone 13 (!) games without a win in European competition (0-4-9). In the current Europa League season, they have suffered three defeats – all by a score of 1-2. In view of this, the betting odds for X2 & Under 3.5 at 2.05 from Betano are also in the top tips table for Nice vs. Freiburg.
However, the difficulty of the task against the current eleventh-placed team in the Bundesliga table is underlined by the fact that the Sport-Club has lost only two of its last eleven Europa League matches. In 2025/26, SCF is still undefeated (2-1-0). Both sides have been very solid defensively recently. Apart from that, there is a lot at stake, although the visitors from the Black Forest could be happy with just one point. I therefore tend to go for the Nice vs. Freiburg tip of under 2.5. I’m betting five units on the 1.85 at Oddset!
