La Liga: Barcelona vs Athletic Club - Betting Tips, Odds & Prediction

Two sides in celebratory moods will end their seasons in style as Barcelona and Athletic Club clash at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on Monday morning.

The Catalonians have secured the La Liga title, while Athletic have also made sure that they will play Champions League football next season. With their objectives already met, both teams will approach this clash with only one goal: ending their memorable campaigns in style.

While there isn’t much to play for, we have explored NZ betting sites to find the best value bets for the game and come up with some rewarding football betting tips.

Barcelona

Barcelona suffered a 3-2 home defeat to Villarreal last time out, though the result had little impact, given Hansi Flick’s side had already secured the La Liga title by beating Espanyol the week before.

While the Blaugrana won La Liga decisively, they have certainly missed the Camp Nou atmosphere. They have lost four times at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys this season, and have a worse home record than the Madrid clubs. 

Football betting sites have taken this into consideration when assigning odds for this match. Barca remain favourites, but betting apps are not giving them runaway odds. 

Team News: After returning to the starting XI last weekend, Marc-André ter Stegen is expected to feature again on Sunday.

Predicted Lineup: Stegen; Garcia, Cubarsi, Martinez, Martin; Gavi, Pedri; Yamal, Lopez, Raphinha; Lewandowski.

Athletic Club

Ernesto Valverde has overseen a remarkable campaign at Athletic Club. The former Barcelona boss steered them to the semi-finals of the Europa League and sealed a top-four La Liga finish. 

The heartbreak of not reaching a home final after falling to a below-par Manchester United in the semi-finals will sting, yet Athletic Club can still look back on their campaign with pride.

Los Leones have responded well to the United upset and went on a three-game winning spree to cement a place in the Champions League. There’s a reason why them winning away at Barcelona is not a far-fetched reality. 

Team News: Nico Williams, who is linked with a move to Barcelona this summer, might miss out with a groin injury.

Predicted Lineup: Simon; Lekue, Vivian, Paredes, Berchiche; Ruiz de Galarreta, Prados; Berenguer, Sancet, Inaki Williams; Guruzeta.

• All of Athletic’s last four wins against Barcelona have come in cup competitions.
• Barcelona have taken all three points in five of their last six La Liga matches against Athletic.
• The aggregate score in the last six Barcelona vs Athletic Club La Liga matches is 12-1 in favour of the Catalonians.
• Athletic have won only three La Liga matches against Barcelona since 2001. 
   

Barcelona have lost six matches in La Liga this season after falling to Villarreal. The Catalans have now lost as many games as Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid this season, but one more than Athletic.

The Basque club also boast the best defensive record in the Spanish top-flight. That said, Barcelona still managed to score twice in both games they played against Athletic in 2024/25. So, it doesn’t appear to be an easy outing for the travelling side on Monday. 

Barcelona have shown that they can unsettle the best defences in the world. While they lost to Inter Milan in the Champions League semis, they did score seven goals against the defensively astute Serie A giants across two legs. 

This should be a low scoring affair, but we expect Barcelona to bag the bragging rights.

Barcelona 1-0 Athletic @ $12.00 

20Bet prices a 1-0 win for Barcelona at $12. This is a lucrative offer to take considering Athletic’s incredible defence and Barca’s equally impressive frontline. We expect this to be a close battle, but Barcelona have the quality to breach the Athletic defence at least once.