This season's Champions League has 36 teams, instead of 32 as before. In addition to the application of a new format from the outside, the number of matches in the tournament has increased dramatically. The Champions League is still known as the most prestigious tournament in the world, from popularity to finance, it always sparkles like stars in the night sky.
When UEFA or FIFA change the format of club and national team tournaments, besides expanding the playing field, revenue and profit are the prerequisite factors. Therefore, this new version of the Champions League is no exception.
How much do teams earn under the new format?
Normally, earning a Champions League ticket has helped teams pocket huge profits. However, the numbers have never been as large as they are now.
The number of matches this season has increased from 125 to 189. The total prize money is €2.47 billion, up 22% compared to the 2023-2024 campaign. UEFA will divide this amount into three parts: one part will be divided equally, one part will depend on performance and the remaining part will be divided among the teams considered to be the pillars of the Champions League.
The prize money is divided equally at 18.6 million euros for each participating team. After that, for each win, the teams will receive an additional 2.1 million euros/match. If there is a draw, the teams will receive 700,000 euros/match.
Teams are guaranteed €275,000 in performance bonuses. The team that finishes top of their group after the qualifying round will receive €9.9 million. For example, Celtic will earn €5.225 million if they stay in 18th place after the qualifying round.
Another interesting aspect of the new payment system is that the “leftover” money is added up after each draw. When a match ends in a win-lose result in the qualifying round, the winning team receives €2.1 million. If the match ends in a draw, each team receives €0.7 million (with €0.7 million left over). The remaining money is added up to be paid to the teams with the highest to lowest results after the qualifying round ends.
Liverpool will receive €9.9m if they finish top of their group. They could earn a further €16.8m if they win all eight games, on top of the €18.6m they have allocated.
What other money is there?
Securing a place in the round of 16 after the qualification round (Top 8) will earn teams two additional sums of money. The first is €2 million for each team finishing in positions from 1st to 8th. In addition, each team will receive €11 million for a direct ticket to the round of 16.
Teams finishing 9th to 16th in the qualifying round will receive €1m in placement money. They will then receive another €1m for a play-off spot.
The concept of Champions League "pillar" teams
Teams in this group will have a much larger commercial footprint than the other groups. The criteria will be divided into two parts, European and non-European.
The "European" section is made up of teams from countries that have contributed significantly to UEFA in terms of commercial value over the past five years. Premier League teams are naturally included in this group, as UEFA has consistently sold Champions League rights at high prices in the UK for many years now. Man City are the biggest beneficiaries, as they are the only team to have won the title in the past five years.
The "non-European" section is made up of teams that have been ranked highly in the UEFA rankings over the last 10 years. If you look at it this way, it's easy to see why Aston Villa earn less than their fellow European teams. Man City and Liverpool have a higher coefficient than the rest of the Premier League teams because they have been the two teams with the best results in recent years. The top teams in these two "pillars" both earn around 45 million Euros.
