2014-15 Champions League Revenue Distribution

GamingZion takes a look at the financial compensation that the Champions League sides earned over the season.

There really is no tournament like the Champions League. Some of the best clubs in Europe enter the competition every year in the hopes of getting crowned champions. Getting the gold Champions League medal around your neck is perhaps the greatest honor a professional player can strive for. And the club that manages to win it is the most revered on the continent.

• Champions League winners will get EUR 10.5 million
• Runner-up will get EUR 6.5 million
• Overall commercial revenue is valued at EUR 1.34 billion

However, lifting the trophy is not all there is to it, gambling news reports. There are also huge financial rewards that come along, and they are not small. Ever since the clubs enter the tournament they receive money in every step of the way. Even if a club does not make a great impact in the Champions League, by reaching the latter stages, they can still take home considerable prize money.

Financial packages were clearly set out at the beginning of the season

Europe’s football governing body UEFA stated at the beginning of the 2014-15 season that the total commercial revenue from the Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup will amount to an eye-watering EUR 1.34 billion. This staggering figure comes from a range of sources that are later divided among the football organization and the respective clubs in the competition.

From the massive EUR 1.34 billion, EUR 55 million was assigned solely to the play-offs, which emulates the financial policy that was carried out in the 2013-14 season. There was a fixed amount of EUR 2.1 million for each of the 20 teams that participated in the play-offs. After these financial payments were handed out to the clubs, what remained left over for the Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup was EUR 1.285 billion.

It is estimated that around 75% of the overall revenues that came from the media rights and other commercial deals were split between the clubs. The amount that they shared form the commercial and media stands at a high EUR 530 million. After the clubs received their end, the remaining 25% of the revenues was kept by UEFA. This money will help them manage European football and make the necessary improvements where needed by making sure that organizational and administrative costs are kept in line. The governing body will also cover solidarity payments to various organizations, clubs, associations and leagues.

Although the clubs commanded the lion’s share of the revenues, at the end there was actually even more reserved for them. If the media and the commercial deals happened to generate over EUR 530 million in revenues, (which is over 82% of the total revenues), then the clubs would once again be rewarded. The remaining 18% would go be received by UEFA.

Furthermore, Europa League usually receives a financial contribution and for the 2014-15 season it was no different. The second most popular European football competition got awarded EUR 40 million from the Champions League share. Another EUR 3 million was given from the club share in order to help the sides that were eliminated from the Champions League and got demoted to the Europa League, according to online sportsbooks in EU.

Winner of the tournament will take home EUR 10.5 million

The net figures are split into two parts that consist of a fixed and a variable payment. EUR 500.7 million is currently in fixed payments that money comes from performance in the competition, group allocations and qualification bonuses. The variable amount stands at EUR 409.6 million and this forms part of the overall market pool. The pool is normally divided according to each of the proportional television markets that are represented by the respective clubs in the Champions League.

All of the 32 clubs in the 2014-15 edition of the tournament expected to receive a minimum fee of EUR 8.6 million. The final of the Champions League will see Barcelona go head to head with Juventus, and the winner of the encounter could pick up EUR 37.4 million from their entire participation in the competition, however this figure does not take into account the market pol share.

The base compensation that each of the clubs receive is EUR 8.6 million, while EUR 1 million is awarded for a victory and EUR 500,000 for a draw during the group stage. In the round of 16, sides had a chance to collect EUR 3.5 million each, while the quarter-finalists got a cool EUR 3.9 million. The final four clubs standing received EUR 4.9 million. Mobile betting sites report that the runner-up in the competition will be rewarded with EUR 6.5 million, while EUR 10.5 million will be granted to the winners of the prestigious tournament.