City could earn €129m from Champions League

The authoritative Swiss Ramble looks at the money to be earned from the Champions League. Champions League overall prize money is 3.6 times the Europa League and 5.5 times the Europa Conference, but this varies by round. In general, the difference becomes smaller the further a club progresses, e.g. last 16 it’s 8x and 16x, while for the winners it’s only 2.3x and 4x.

In 2022/23 each of the 32 clubs qualifying for Champions League group stage gets €15.64m plus €2.8m for a win and €930k for a draw. Additional prize money for each further stage reached: last 16 €9.6m, quarter-final €10.6m, semi-final €12.5m, final €15.5m and winners €20m.

Each club in the Europa League group stage get €3.63m plus €630k for a win and €210k for a draw. Additional prize money: win group €1.1m (runners-up €550k), knockout round €500k, last 16 €1.2m, quarter-final €1.8m, semi-final €2.8m, final €4.6m and winners €8.6m.

Each club in the Europa Conference group stage get €2.94m plus €500k for a win and €166k for a draw. Additional prize money: win group €650k (runners-up €325k), knockout round €300k, last 16 €600k, quarter-final €1m, semi-final €2m, final €3m and winners €5m.

The Zurich guru’s calculations suggest that 6 clubs have already earned more than €80m from the 2022/23 Champions League. PSG lead the way with €98m, followed by Bayern €93m and Real Madrid €93m, then three English clubs: Man City €84m, Liverpool €82m and Chelsea €81m.

Bayern Munich have earned most prize money to date with €27.8m, as they won all 6 games in the group stage, worth €16.8m (€2.8m for each win), €1.4m for share of money left on the table after draws and €9.6m for reaching the last 16. Next best with five wins: Liverpool and Napoli.

All four English clubs have reached the last 16, so there is little difference in the revenue distribution for Man City €84m, Liverpool €82m and €81m. However, Tottenham Hotspur €64m is a fair bit less, mainly because of a much lower UEFA coefficient and TV pool.

Liverpool have earned the most prize money of the English clubs to date with €24.7m, thanks to their five wins in the group. Each club received €9.6m for reaching the last 16. Chelsea have the highest UEFA coefficient over the 10-year period, though their victory in the 2012-13 Champions League will drop out next season, when they are likely to be overtaken by Man City and Liverpool.

These figures will change depending on how teams progress. For example, if Man City were to win the Champions League (and the other English clubs were eliminated in the last 16), then they would earn a massive €129m.

Apart from the financial benefits, success in the Champions League attracts a higher calibre of player.

Scottish clubs

The return of Scottish clubs to CL group stage led to €29m earnings for Celtic and €20m for Rangers. Main difference is UEFA 10-year coefficient, where Rangers suffer from not qualifying for Europe for first half of period. Highest amounts from €15.6m participation fee.

Scotland is allocated 10% (€6.8m) of UK TV pool, based on population. Celtic receive slightly more as the first half is split on final position in last season’s Premiership. Rangers lost all six group matches, so receive no prize money, while Celtic get €1.9m for two draws.

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The Political Economy of Football V2

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