Huge gulf finances laid bare for the three European competitions | OneFootball

The huge gulf in finances between the Champions League and both the Europa and Conference leagues has been laid bare…

View inside the stadium prior to the UEFA Champions League match between Aston Villa and Celtic at Villa Park on January 29, 2025. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

It’s so important we build to make sure we are back next year. Qualifying for the Champions League is always important to clubs like Celtic due to the financial rewards on offer. Mind boggling numbers that are on a different planet from what we earn on the domestic front.

That was laid bare when it was revealed what clubs had earned through their European exploits in UEFA’s three competitions.

Brendan Rodgers Manager of Celtic talks to TNT sports Aston Villa v Celtic, UEFA Champions League, Villa Park, – 29 January 2025. Photo RyanBrowne Shutterstock

Our own club earned in excess of €14 million after finishing in 21st place, and that’s excluding other bonuses such as broadcasting, rights, advertising, and gate receipts etc which take that number in excess of €40 million.

To put that into context the side who finished top of the Europa league standings Lazio earned just over €8 million for their league performance. While in the conference league Chelsea earned just under €5 million for topping the table.

A huge gulf in financial rewards

That’s a huge gulf in financial rewards, and it reiterates how vital it is that we qualify for Europes top club competition on a regular basis. Yeah sure the Europa or Conference Leagues would give us a more realistic chance of advancing due to the drop in quality, but if we want to grow as a club both on the pitch and off, then the Champions League is the only place to be.

Morgan Rogers of Aston Villa celebrates after the team’s victory with the match ball after his hat trick during the UEFA Champions League match between Aston Villa and Celtic at Villa Park on January 29, 2025. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

The last few seasons we’ve been fortunate as we’ve qualified automatically as League Champions, but next season we will have to negotiate a qualifier to reap those same financial rewards, and to do so me must build on our current financial advantage and strengthen our squad.

Nice to see theRangers helping the co-efficient

We want to go into next seasons qualifiers at full strength and capable of advancing. We want to grow as a footballing force, and being a regular face at Europe’s top table will help us achieve that goal. The fact that theRangers are progressing in the Europa League is helpful for us for future seasons, assuming our domestic dominance continues as expected.