Top sports leagues to bet on Cloudbet in May 2026

May is one of the biggest months in the sports calendar. European soccer leagues reach their final weeks, domestic and European cup finals take place, and the NBA and NHL playoffs move toward the Conference Finals. Tennis builds toward the French Open, the WNBA season begins, MLB continues through its early regular season, and major events in esports, MMA, and Formula 1 fill out the month.

In this article, we go through the major sporting events to watch on Cloudbet in May 2026.

Soccer

Domestic leagues

Premier League

May 11 Update: Arsenal have strengthened their position at the top since the start of the month and now sit on 79 points from 36 games, five points clear of Manchester City (74 points from 35 games). The title race is still mathematically alive.

Almost every important Premier League race is still alive heading into the final weeks of May. Arsenal and Manchester City are still fighting for the title, Liverpool and Aston Villa are level in the Champions League race, several clubs are chasing European qualification, and Tottenham and West Ham are still trying to avoid the final relegation place.

Arsenal have the advantage at the top, but the run-in is not clean. West Ham are fighting for survival, Burnley have nothing to play for, and Crystal Palace away on the final day is not the easiest place to finish a title race.

City’s schedule looks tougher, with Brentford, Bournemouth, and Aston Villa all still playing for Europe. Their extra fixture against Crystal Palace also gives them a chance to close the gap, but it adds another pressure game into the run-in.

The Champions League race has one obvious swing fixture: Aston Villa vs Liverpool. Villa also have to go to Manchester City on the final day, while Liverpool finish at home to Brentford, who are chasing what would be their first European qualification. That makes the European race especially tangled, with Bournemouth and Brighton also close enough to stay involved.

At the bottom, Wolves and Burnley are already down, so the main question is who joins them. Tottenham, West Ham, and Nottingham Forest all have difficult fixtures left. Either way, one of three big teams is going to be relegated.

La Liga

May 11 Update: Barcelona have now officially clinched the 2025/26 La Liga title. They sealed it on May 10 with a 2-0 victory over Real Madrid in El Clásico (three games to spare).

Barcelona are close to the La Liga title, but El Clásico still matters because Real Madrid need to win to keep any pressure on. Villarreal and Atlético Madrid are also worth tracking in the Champions League race, especially with the two meeting on the final day.

The more interesting betting angle is the relegation battle. Valencia are 12th, but they are only a few points above the danger zone, and almost every team still has at least one direct survival fixture left. Sevilla vs Espanyol, Elche vs Alavés, Real Oviedo vs Alavés, Levante vs Mallorca, and Mallorca vs Real Oviedo all stand out because they involve teams taking points directly off each other. With four rounds left, La Liga is one of the messiest relegation races in Europe.

Ligue 1

Ligue 1 still has a title race, but PSG are six points clear with three games left, so Lens probably need to beat them directly on May 13 to keep it alive. Lens are also trying to protect their Champions League place, with Lyon and Lille still close enough to apply pressure.

The bottom is more about the relegation playoff than automatic relegation. Metz are already down, while Nantes need a five-point swing from two games just to reach the playoff spot, so the more realistic focus is Nice, Le Havre and Auxerre. Auxerre vs Nice is the key one, with the final playoff place still close enough to move before the last day.

Bundesliga

Bayern have already taken the title out of the Bundesliga picture, but the Champions League race is still tight. Leverkusen, Stuttgart and Hoffenheim are level on points behind RB Leipzig, with Stuttgart vs Leverkusen the obvious swing fixture.

At the bottom, Wolfsburg and St. Pauli are level, with Heidenheim three points behind. St. Pauli vs Wolfsburg on the final day could decide who goes straight down and who gets the relegation playoff route instead.

 Domestic cup finals

May also brings several major domestic cup finals across Europe. There is not much to overthink here: these are one-off matches with silverware on the line, and they usually bring a different betting profile to league fixtures. Extra time and penalty markets can be worth checking, especially in finals where teams are likely to start cautiously.

European cup finals

May 11 Update: Champions League final is now confirmed: Arsenal vs Paris Saint-Germain, May 30.

The European cup finals bring three of the biggest soccer betting events of May. The Champions League final is the headline, with Arsenal facing Paris Saint-Germain on May 30, while the Europa League and Conference League finals should still be strong betting events once the matchups are confirmed.

Those two finals have been especially entertaining in recent years because they often feature clubs that do not get regular shots at major European silverware. That can make the games feel more open, emotional and unpredictable than a standard knockout tie, with neutral venues, trophy pressure and extra-time markets all worth watching.

Basketball

The NBA Playoffs are already into the Conference semi-finals, with the Conference Finals to follow later in May once the current series are complete. Oklahoma City look like one of the strongest favorites after sweeping Phoenix in the first round, while the Knicks also made a strong start against Philadelphia.

The WNBA regular season also begins in May, adding another basketball market to follow as teams settle into new rotations.

Tennis

May is all about the final build-up to the French Open, with the Italian Open acting as the last major form check before Roland Garros. Rome usually gives the clearest read on who is genuinely ready for clay, because the draw is strong, the matches are longer than smaller warm-up events, and most of the main French Open contenders are involved.

On the men’s side, players like Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev, Lorenzo Musetti and Daniil Medvedev are worth watching closely in Rome, either because of their clay form, ranking position or past results on the surface. For the WTA, Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula should help shape the market before Paris.

Hamburg and Strasbourg then become more situational betting events. Some players will use them to get extra clay matches before the Grand Slam, while others may be protecting fitness and managing workload. That can make outright markets harder to read, but early-round matchups can still offer value if a strong player is clearly short of rhythm.

The French Open starts on May 24, so the end of the month shifts from preparation to Grand Slam betting. At that point, recent clay form matters more than reputation alone. Rome performances, injury management, draw difficulty and long-match fitness should all feed into how the first week at Roland Garros is priced.

Ice hockey

The NHL Playoffs are into the second round, with the Stanley Cup race down to eight teams. Colorado look like the strongest contender after sweeping Los Angeles in the first round and taking a 2-0 lead over Minnesota, while Carolina are also 2-0 up against Philadelphia and continue to look like one of the more reliable playoff teams. Buffalo vs Montreal is one of the fresher matchups, with Buffalo trying to build on its first playoff series win in 19 years.

The IIHF World Championship starts on May 15 with 16 national teams across two groups. Canada, USA, Sweden, Finland and Czechia should be among the main medal contenders, but Switzerland also matter as hosts. The tournament runs through to the Gold Medal Game on May 31.

Baseball

The MLB season runs throughout May, with teams moving further into the 162-game schedule. By this point, there is more useful form than in April, but it is still early enough for standings to shift quickly.

For betting, May is usually more about day-to-day factors than long-term narratives. Starting pitchers, bullpen workload, travel, injuries and series matchups all matter, especially when teams are playing almost every day.

Esports

May is a strong esports month, especially for CS2 and Dota 2. PGL Astana and IEM Atlanta overlap, which means the CS2 field is split across two events rather than all the strongest teams being in one place. PGL Astana still has a solid lineup, with Spirit, Falcons, G2, MOUZ, FURIA, The MongolZ and PARIVISION among the main names, while IEM Atlanta may attract more attention if the stronger title contenders are there.

For Dota 2, DreamLeague Season 29 is the bigger mid-month event, with 16 teams, a $1 million prize pool and a long format that should reward consistency rather than one-off upset wins. BLAST Slam VII then starts at the end of May, with Team Liquid entering as reigning BLAST Slam champions and a strong invited field that includes Tundra, Falcons, Spirit and BetBoom.

MMA

May 11 Update: UFC 328 has already taken place (May 9). In the main event, Sean Strickland defeated Khamzat Chimaev by split decision in a major upset to reclaim the middleweight title.

The MMA schedule is led by UFC 328, where Khamzat Chimaev faces Sean Strickland in the biggest fight of the month. Chimaev brings the unbeaten record and obvious finishing threat, while Strickland gives the matchup a different kind of pressure with his awkward volume striking and durability.

Later in the month, PFL Brussels has a useful prospect-vs-veteran headline, with undefeated Belgian fighter Patrick Habirora facing former UFC champion Benson Henderson. PFL MENA also starts its 2026 season in Dubai, with regional tournament fights across featherweight and lightweight.

Racing

The Canadian Grand Prix is the main racing event to watch in May, and it arrives with Mercedes in control of the early F1 season. Kimi Antonelli leads the drivers’ standings on 100 points after winning three races in a row, with teammate George Russell second on 80. Ferrari and McLaren are the closest challengers, but neither has matched Mercedes’ consistency yet.

Canada should be a useful test because Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve is fast, stop-start and heavy on braking, with chicanes, the hairpin and the Wall of Champions all giving drivers very little margin for error. Antonelli will likely start as one of the favourites based on current form, but Norris and Piastri looked stronger for McLaren in Miami, while Leclerc, Hamilton and Verstappen still have enough pace to make qualifying and podium markets worth watching.