Benfica punch above their weight in Europe

The authoritative Swiss Ramble reviews the finances of Benfica which posted a €37m pre-tax profit iin 2024/25, which reflected “a robust economic and financial situation”. This represented “a complete reversal of the 2023/24 financial year”, when they lost €31m, so their bottom line improved by €68m. Revenue shot up by €54m (31%) from €177m to a club record €231m, while profit on player sales improved €31m (52%) from €58m to €89m.

Benfica’s revenue growth was largely driven by the performances in the Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup, which led to broadcasting rising by €47m (46%) from €101m to €148m.

Importance of player sales

As always, Benfica’s financials greatly benefited from player trading with a hefty €89m profit from player sales, made up of a €117m gain less €28m expenses. The largest profit came from the sale of Joao Neves to Paris Saint-Germain, which generated a profit of €60m, while other important transfers included Marcos Leonardo to Al-Hilal, David Neres to Napoli and Morata to Nottingham Forest.

This season should see another large profit, following the sales of Alvaro Carreras to Real Madrid €50m, Kerem Aktürkoğlu to Fenerbahce €22.5m and Casper Tengstedt to Feyenoord €6m.

Benfica are very reliant on player sales, earning more than three-quarters of a billion Euros in the last decade, including €340m in the last five years alone. This season should see another large profit, following the sales of Alvaro Carreras to Real Madrid €50m, Kerem Aktürkoğlu to Fenerbahce €22.5m and Casper Tengstedt to Feyenoord €6m.

In fact, in the five years up to 2023/24, Benfica’s €377m profit from player sales was the fourth highest in Europe, only below Chelsea, Manchester City and Ajax. To place this into perspective, that was more than twice as much as the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool. Benfica are regarded as a great stepping stone for players that want to showcase their skills on the European stage, especially South Americans, which allows the club to turn a quick profit, e.g. Enzo Fernandez.

It’s fair to say that Benfica are something of a global powerhouse in player trading, making good use of their highly regarded academy. They have seven regional training centres in Portugal, as well as bases abroad in Brazil, USA and Ivory Coast. That said, this strategy is a bit of a double-edged sword, as Benfica’s willingness to cash in on their talent factory means that they lose good players every season.

Benfica’s €37m profit last season was their best financial result for five years, as they had posted losses in three of the four previous seasons (with a small €2m profit in the other one).

The importance of Champions League qualification to the Benfica business model cannot be over-stated, as seen by the €65m they have averaged in the last four seasons, compared to only €11m in the Europa League in 2020/21. Indeed, Costa has said that it is “fundamental to our planning and competitiveness”. Benfica have already earned €54m this season after their last minute qualification for the knockout round. They would receive another €11m if they manage to get past Real Madrid again.

Benfica’s average attendance increased from 56,248 to 58,746, which was the highest in Portugal by far, a fair way ahead of Sporting 42,529, Porto 40,609, Vitoria SC 18,447 and Braga 13,868.

Benfica’s wage bill rose €13m (11%) from €115m to €128m, a new club high, mainly due to a €10m increase in severance payments to former coaching staff, as well as €3m higher performance bonuses. This means that wages are up 88% since 2017/18, rising by £60m from £68m.

Benfica’s €128m wage bill is easily the highest in Portugal, far above Sporting €88m and Porto €82m. The gap to the rest of the league is huge, e.g. the next highest is Braga €39m, followed by Vitoria SC €21m. However, Benfica’s wages are still much lower than the top clubs in the major leagues.

Given the financial advantages that they enjoy in Portugal thanks to generating the highest revenue and paying the highest wages, Benfica legitimately aspire to win the league on a regular basis, but they have not met this objective for the last two years – and it looks unlikely to happen again this season.

Their ability to punch above their weight on the European stage, given their relatively low revenue compared to rivals from richer leagues, has been impressive.

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The Political Economy of Football V2

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