AC Milan hope to go far in the Champions League not just because of the sporting pride it brings, but also the boost to the club’s finances.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport report this morning, Milan started the ‘league phase’ with defeats to Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen but have since hit back, beating Club Brugge and Real Madrid in their most recent two outings, both 3-1.
The remaining calendar – at least on paper – is straightforward. After tonight’s game against Slovan Bratislava (bottom with zero points) there are home games against Red Star and Girona, then a trip to Dinamo Zagreb.
If Milan managed to get 12 points from the remaining 12 available they would be expected to qualify directly for the round of 16, which could be a vital boost for the accounts of the new year that began in July.
The UEFA bonuses for this edition consist of €2.1m for each win and €700k for draws, while direct access to the final 16 brings €11m. In addition, there is also a figure based on the position in the league table, with eighth worth €7.97m.
If assuming that the Rossoneri end with six victories and two defeats, the projection would be around €31.5m for just playing in the last 16. That is a figure to which obviously we must add the initial participation fee and the historical market pool/ranking.
The hope would then be that a favourable draw comes out and the team can go further still. This is why the Champions League is so important, and missing out in 2025-26 would be a ‘financial tragedy’.
When they bring lower grade coach, they didn’t think about sporting results.
Gaining some few millions in difference of coaches salaries is obviously not worth losing CL spot, but maybe this is something what Red Birds needs to get and understand
All the remaining matches will be difficult, it will be a struggle to get direct access to the next round, anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves.
This team is not built on a solid foundation and that is why there is no consistency.
I don’t think anyone would be surprised if we drop points tonight , even though we are much stronger on paper.
Exactly! I’ve been saying the closer we are to the end of the set of games for this round the harder they become. Teams can close up vs us
Watchout ,u have a piece of $hit in that picture
Those millions are definitely needed as this team will not be playing UCL next season.
Exactly what I was thinking.