- 1 Olympique de Marseille vs Strasbourg: two fresh starts to kick off the season
- 2 Marseille: a slimmer squad, but the Velodrome still carries weight
- 3 Strasbourg: a chaotic summer and a tricky trip
- 4 Ligue 1 Prediction Marseille vs Strasbourg
- 5 First, a word on our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the images…
Olympique de Marseille vs Strasbourg: two fresh starts to kick off the season 
Ligue 1 2026-2027 gets under way on Friday 21 August at 20:45, and the curtain rises at the Stade Velodrome. Marseille host Strasbourg in the opener, a game that already feels like an early test for both managers.
Bruno Genesio took charge of the Marseille dugout this summer after Habib Beye moved on. OM finished fifth on 59 points last season, a tally that left them out of the Champions League.
The club will therefore play in the league phase of the Europa League, a consolation prize nobody in Marseille is pretending to love. That sense of frustration gives the new season an edge, with a need to deliver from night one.
Strasbourg arrive with a similar rebuild on the touchline. Gary O’Neil left for Ipswich over the summer, and the Alsace club have handed the job to Portuguese coach Hugo Oliveira, who spent a year and a half at Famalicao.
Racing finished last term in eighth place, six points behind OM. That was enough to shut them out of Europe, despite the club’s run to the Conference League semi-finals.
Both sides turn up with heavily reshaped squads and combinations that are still being worked out. That is exactly the sort of setup that can throw up a surprise on opening weekend.
The bookmakers, though, have not hesitated. A Marseille win is priced around 1.70, while a Strasbourg victory is out at 4.50, with the home side given a 63% chance of success based on the odds.
One detail does pour a little cold water on the optimism: Marseille were unbeaten against Strasbourg last season, but they never really took control of either meeting (1-2, 2-2). That should be enough to remind everyone this is not a formality.
Marseille: a slimmer squad, but the Velodrome still carries weight 
Marseille scored 63 goals in Ligue 1 last season, the third-best total in the division. Most of that attacking damage came at home, where OM found the net in every match except one.
The Velodrome remains one of the league’s big stages. Marseille are unbeaten in their last three Ligue 1 matches there and can make it four on Friday.
Their opening-night home record points the same way, with five straight season openers at home without a defeat. The most recent ended in a 5-2 demolition of Paris FC.
Pre-season brought three wins and two defeats. Nimes (2-1), Al-Shahaniya (3-0) and Athletic Bilbao (3-1) were all beaten, giving the group a lift.
The two losses came against Nice (0-3) and Atletico Madrid (1-2), which is a different level altogether. They were a reminder that the margin gets thin quickly when the opposition steps up.
Marseille’s transfer business was mostly about exits. Mason Greenwood, with 26 goals, has gone to Fenerbahce for around 40 million euros, a hole that cannot be filled in a matter of weeks.
Aubameyang, with 14 goals, goalkeeper Rulli, defender Medina and Traore have also left the Canebiere. With the finances under watch from the DNCG and UEFA, no new signing had been confirmed less than a week before kick-off.
Igor Paixao now carries a huge attacking burden. The Brazilian winger, who scored 12 goals last season, has netted in each of the last four pre-season matches and has been Marseille’s standout performer over the summer.
Amine Gouiri, who scored 11 last term, has drawn a blank throughout pre-season. Even so, his partnership with Paixao remains Genesio’s main attacking hope.
As for absentees, Quinten Timber is suspended and will miss the opener. Nayef Aguerd has not played a single friendly and remains doubtful, which leaves an already weakened back line looking even more fragile.
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Strasbourg: a chaotic summer and a tricky trip 
Strasbourg averaged 1.35 points per away match last season. That return on the road is now their best argument heading into the new campaign.
The finer detail is even more telling: five of the six away defeats they suffered were by a single goal. This is a side that rarely falls apart, even when it is being outplayed.
Racing are also on a six-match unbeaten run away from home in league action. Making it seven on Friday night would be a serious statement given the circumstances.
Three of the last four games in that run last season ended in wins. Strasbourg had also started the previous campaign with a 1-0 victory at Metz.
Pre-season, though, was rough. Six straight defeats came before a 1-1 draw at Newcastle, which was the only bright spot in a bleak summer.
Sporting Lisbon (7-0), Blackburn (0-2), Brighton (4-3) and Freiburg (2-0) were among the teams to punish them. Those results explain why supporters are heading into the opener with caution.
Hugo Oliveira steps into Ligue 1 with a squad that has been heavily churned. Emegha and Barco have joined Chelsea, who own a stake in the club through BlueCo, while Enciso and Ouattara have moved on to Ipswich.
Joaquin Panichelli, Strasbourg’s top scorer with 20 goals, is still recovering from an ACL injury. His absence leaves Oliveira without his main reference point in the box.
Giovanni Reyna, signed from Monchengladbach in early August 2026, is still waiting for his first start. The American midfielder is one of several attacking bets in a summer when the club spent most of its time selling.
There are questions at the back too, with Doukoure, Hogsberg and Chilwell all doubtful. Against a full Velodrome on opening night, that lack of stability could prove costly.
There is still one reason for hope: Strasbourg are unbeaten in their last four visits to Marseille. Godo, who scored 16 goals last season, is more than capable of punishing a defence still trying to find its feet.
But you have to go back to 1997 and a 1-0 win to find Strasbourg’s last league victory in Marseille. Twenty-nine years is a long wait, and it hangs heavy over a team still being rebuilt.
Likely Marseille XI: De Lange – Weah, Balerdi, Kondogbia, Emerson – Abdelli, Hojbjerg, Gomes – Harit, Gouiri, Paixao
Likely Strasbourg XI: Jorgensen – G. Doue, Omobamidele, Coulibaly, Del Blanco – El Mourabet, Sousa – Yassine, Reyna, Godo – Mara
Ligue 1 Prediction Marseille vs Strasbourg
Our prediction: Marseille to win
The gap in preparation between the two sides is too big to ignore. Marseille won three of their five friendlies, while Strasbourg lost six in a row before salvaging a draw at Newcastle.
Marseille also have an attack that can settle a game in one flash, with Paixao scoring in his last four outings. At the other end, the absence of Panichelli and doubts over Doukoure, Hogsberg and Chilwell leave the Strasbourg defence looking badly short-handed.
At 1.70, Marseille to win is the cleanest play on this match. Back OM to get the job done at the Velodrome.
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