Celtic set for record Champions League income should they reach group stages after UEFA’s 50 per cent increase in competition prize money
- Celtic earned £30m from qualifying for the group stages in the last two seasons
- Should they qualify for 2018-19 Champions League they would earn an increase
- Brendan Rodgers’ side will have to negotiate an extra qualifying round this year
- UEFA income from European competitions are estimated to hit around £2.85bn
Celtic are in line for a record amount of Champions League income if they reach next season’s group stage after UEFA announced an astonishing 50-per-cent increase in the prize fund.
The Parkhead club have earned around £30million from joining the elite in each of the last two campaigns, with that figure made up of prize money, broadcast revenues and gate receipts.
Brendan Rodgers’ men have to negotiate an extra qualifying round this summer but success would seem them bank an improved pay-out, further increasing their financial dominance of the Scottish game.
Celtic have qualified for the Champions League group stages in each of the last two seasons
Total income from the Champions League, Europa League and Super Cup is estimated to hit £2.85billion in 2018-19, up nearly £800million on this season’s figure.
This translates to a prize pot of £2.23bn, with UEFA’s costs and solidarity payments accounting for the rest.
The lion’s share, as ever, will go to clubs in the Champions League, with qualification for the group stage worth a guaranteed £13.35m, plus £2.36m for a win and nearly £800,000 for a draw.
There are further bonuses for progressing through each round of the knock-out stages, with the winner at Atletico Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano home collecting a further £44.65m in prize money.
The lion’s share of UEFA’s prize money will go to clubs competing in the Champions League
There are further payments that depend on each club’s record in UEFA competitions over the last 10 years – Celtic are ranked 45th on that list – and each club’s share of its national broadcast ‘market pool’.
Taken altogether, a Champions League victory would be worth more than £100m to a British club next season.
The money available to Europa League contestants is not quite as impressive, but Rangers, Aberdeen and Hibernian could all bank more than was previously available. The total prize fund has grown by 25 per cent to £446.5m.
In fact, UEFA is making so much money from its club competitions that a domestic champion, such as Gibraltar’s Lincoln Red Imps, that loses in the preliminary round of Champions League qualifying this summer will still get £430,000 for their trouble.
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