Millions in the European Cup: “Give to the rich”: The problem of UEFA’s millions

308 million euros doesn’t sound bad at all. This season, UEFA is distributing significantly more money to clubs that are not participating in the European Cup and are not benefiting from the astronomically increased income in the reformed Champions, Europa or Conference League. However, these so-called solidarity payments to promote young talent are practically ineffective in counteracting the massive financial imbalance. In Germany, hardly more than ten million euros will arrive – a sum that a European Cup participant easily earns on their own.

Payday for Frankfurt, Hoffenheim and Heidenheim

Those responsible for the clubs that did not qualify last season can only watch in agony as UEFA distributes massive amounts of money to the competition. According to the umbrella organization, the German Europa League starters Eintracht Frankfurt and TSG Hoffenheim will receive their starting bonus of 4.14 million euros this Friday. Conference League debutant 1. FC Heidenheim will receive 3.05 million euros.

In the Champions League, in which Bayer Leverkusen, FC Bayern, VfB Stuttgart, RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund are taking part, 17.87 million euros were paid out for the qualification alone, three million more than in the previous premier class cycle. UEFA is increasing its revenue from the European Cup thanks to the reforms with more games and participants to a forecast total of 4.4 billion euros. Those who stay in the competition for a long time easily earn millions in the high double-digit range.

The ones who suffer are the clubs that would like to be there but didn’t manage it – in the Bundesliga, for example, former international starters such as Borussia Mönchengladbach, Werder Bremen or VfL Wolfsburg. “Our big goal is to play in a European competition again. But that has never been easy. And it is now becoming increasingly difficult. Because there are very big differences in how much money the individual clubs can invest,” Wolfsburg’s new sports director Peter Christiansen told the German Press Agency.

Clear fan criticism

The current UEFA distribution key is valid until the 2027/28 season. That seems to be enough time for the impression of a two-tier society to become firmly entrenched in the Bundesliga. In addition to the European Cup problem, there is a regular dispute over how the income from the league’s marketing is distributed. The two are related – in principle, but depending on the market, more money is paid for a league with attractive, internationally successful clubs.

“There have long been fears that the increased revenue from international competitions will cause the gap in the national leagues to widen,” said the fan organization “Unsere Kurve” in response to a dpa query. “The rich are given.” Financially, “the new Champions League is very similar to the planned Super League, with a few clubs in the biggest leagues benefiting in particular.”

In the previous season, when there was less UEFA money than in the current season, FC Bayern earned a good 130 million euros from their appearances in the Champions League. BVB also profited enormously from reaching the final at Wembley Stadium, which they ultimately lost.

“The champions are becoming more and more dominant, and fewer and fewer points are needed to stay in the league. It is not surprising that clubs like Darmstadt, Braunschweig, Fürth and Paderborn no longer have a chance of surviving in the Bundesliga,” said “Unsere Kurve”. There was a joint statement from major fan representatives of Bayern and Dortmund, “who demanded 50 percent for the solidarity fund.”

No solution in sight

However, the European Cup starters are unlikely to hand over any money, and the argument that they have earned the sums through sporting means cannot be dismissed. Moreover, the UEFA solidarity payments are hardly worth mentioning when broken down to the Bundesliga.

Before the reform, around eight million euros flowed to the clubs via the German Football Association and the German Football League – albeit to the second division teams. According to dpa information, the money was passed on in recent years according to decisions made by the DFL executive committee. For the non-participants in the European Cup in the Bundesliga, less than one million euros per club in the balance sheets is not decisive.

“The answer” to the imbalance can only be “to set up a club correctly, to create a foundation, to establish a style of play and to work hard on it every day,” said Christiansen, whose club, however, benefits from the support of car manufacturer Volkswagen.