AC Milan are facing the realistic possibility of not having Champions League football in 2025-26, something that would cause economic damage.
La Gazzetta dello Sport have published a report which outlines the overall difference between the first and second continental competition, i.e. the Europa League. The UEFA prize money – divided into participation fees, results and market pool – allocated overall to the current edition of the Champions League (and which will be valid for three years) amounts to €2.47bn.
The Europa League has been allocated €565m, still €100m more than the previous three years (the Champions League prize fund went up €500m), but a drastically lower figure than its richer big brother.
The good news is that Milan, thanks to very prudent financial management by Elliott Management and RedBird Capital, have sorted out the accounts, producing a profit that had not been seen for a long time.
So, in principle, the Rossoneri being in the Europa League would not cause any immediate financial emergency (needing a fire sale). If anything, it would have a cascade effect on future developments precisely because participating in the Europa League would bring in much lower revenues.
Milan obtained around €60m in UEFA prize money this season, to which the box office revenue must be added. The club have decided not to communicate the revenue for ticket sales, but for the five home games, we can imagine it was at least €25m. That means almost €90m, from a premature elimination.
Going into detail about the UEFA prize money: €18.62m for participation; €2.1m for each victory in the league phase and €700k for a draw plus bonuses based on the position in the standings. They range from €275k for the 36th-placed team to around €10m for the first.
Then there is €11m for those who qualify for the round of 16; €12.5m for the quarter-finals; €15m for the semi-finals; €18.5m for the final and €6.5m more for those who lift the cup.
A comparison with the Europa League is scary: €4.31m for participation; €450k for each victory in the league phase and €150k for a draw; plus bonuses based on the ranking: €600k for the top eight, €300k from ninth to 24th place. Those who qualify for the round of 16 get €1.75m; €2.5m for the quarter-finals; €4.2m for the semi-finals; €7m for the final; €6m more for those who lift the cup.
Doing some rough calculations, if Milan hypothetically had followed the same path as in the Champions League in this Europa League, instead of €60m the prize money would have been around €20m.
It is a difference that would obviously also be found in ticket sales, given the average prices for the Europa League would be decidedly lower than for home matches in the Champions League. Instead of €25m, it would be around €10m. Total: €85m versus €30m.
