Man Utd miss out on fortune because of Champions League disaster

Tom Weber

• Updated: 13 Dec 2023 10:45 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester United have missed out on as much as €52.7 million in Champions League prize money.

The Red Devils were knocked out of the competition in the group stage with the worst defensive record of any English team ever after losing their vital home clash with Bayern Munich 1-0. Man Utd finished bottom of their group below Galatasaray, Copenhagen and the Bavarians and will not even get to compete in the Europa League this season.

The loss and subsequent exit took the pressure on Erik ten Hag up another notch after the ignoble 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth at the weekend. Prior to the Bayern clash, club legends Paul Scholes and Rio Ferdinand argued that the Red Devils' dire campaign - in which they have so far lost 12 of their 24 fixtures - could have been prevented had they signed the likes of Harry Kane and Declan Rice in the summer.

Well, with their premature exit from the Champions League, United's chances of signing players of that calibre have taken a hit as it has seen them miss out on an eye-watering amount of prize money - enough to buy half a Harry Kane or a full Andre Onana.

How much money have Man Utd missed out on?

United received €15.6m due to their participation in the Champions League group stages. Had they reached the knockouts, they could have earned up to an additional €52.7m, though given the way they have been playing this season, it would have been quite a shock for them to go all the way in Europe.

Failing to reach the round of 16 has seen them lose out on €9.6m, while making the quarter-finals would have been worth €10.6m. In the semis, United would have received an additional €12.5m and €15.5m for finishing as runners-up. Winning the Champions League is a success to the tune of €20m.

Given that they didn't even get into the Europa League, United have also missed out on the potential €18m that triumphing in that competition would have yielded.