The Club World Cup, despite facing criticism, has proven to be a lucrative venture for participating clubs due to its $1 billion prize pool.
With the inaugural edition of the revamped tournament concluded, we can now examine the financial benefits reaped by the involved clubs.
BBC Sport provides an analysis of the prize money distribution and its implications for the clubs involved.
Prize Money Details
The restructured competition featured a $1 billion (£726 million) prize pool for the 32 participating clubs, with $525 million allocated for participation and $475 million distributed based on performance.
European clubs received participation fees based on a ranking that considered sporting and commercial factors, resulting in varying amounts. European clubs earned between $12.81 million and $38.19 million merely for participating. In contrast, clubs from other continents received a fixed fee: $15.21 million for South America, $9.55 million for North and Central America, Asia, and Africa, and $3.58 million for Oceania.
FIFA has not disclosed the specific amounts awarded to European clubs for participation, so estimates from the football finance website The Swiss Ramble, based on UEFA's club coefficient system, have been used. The prize money figures have been converted from US dollars to pounds sterling.
Major Beneficiaries
Tournament champions Chelsea emerged as the most financially successful club, earning approximately £84 million, while Paris St-Germain secured around £78.4 million for reaching the final.
European clubs, benefiting from higher participation fees, averaged around £39 million. Meanwhile, commendable performances by teams like semi-finalists Fluminense resulted in South American clubs averaging £24 million.
Additional funds were available for group stage results, with roughly £1.5 million for a win and £730,000 for a draw. However, five clubs, including Pachuca and Seattle Sounders, lost all three group games, receiving only their participation fee.
Auckland City's Financial Success
While prize money for part-time teams like Auckland City may seem modest, the competition has been significantly profitable for them relative to their overall finances.
Auckland City took home £3.3 million, approximately seven times their projected 2024 revenue of £488,000. In comparison, Real Madrid's £67 million earnings represented just 4% of their 2024 revenue of £901 million.
Football finance expert Kieran Maguire expressed concerns about the impact on other New Zealand teams, stating, "They have earned so much money that it's difficult to see anybody being able to compete with them if they invest in the playing squad. There's a strong incentive to do so, enhancing their chances of qualifying for the next Club World Cup. It's beneficial for them but not necessarily for the league's competitiveness and its appeal to broadcasters."
Boost to Transfer Budgets
For European clubs, the additional revenue has been welcomed as a means to enhance their transfer budgets.
Under UEFA regulations, clubs can allocate 70% of their revenue to wages, transfers, and agents' fees, meaning that for every £50 million earned, an additional £35 million is available for recruitment.
Some clubs have already offset their summer transfer expenses by participating in the tournament.
More than 65% of Borussia Dortmund's £57.9 million transfer expenditure this summer has been covered by their participation, having reached the quarter-final stage. The £27 million paid to Sunderland for Jobe Bellingham is fully offset.
Chelsea's £198 million spent on reinforcements, including Joao Pedro and Liam Delap, is partially covered by their successful tournament run, accounting for £84 million.
Despite Manchester City's unexpected last-16 exit to Al-Hilal, they still earned approximately £38 million from the tournament, equating to 35% of their summer business. This amount effectively covered their £31 million acquisition of Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolves.
Real Madrid paid Liverpool about £8.4 million for Trent Alexander-Arnold to join their squad early for the competition, a cost offset after just three matches.
Finance expert Maguire commented on the tournament's financial incentives, "It's a welcome boost for football club accountants, and the business side will be pleased. However, fans, particularly of European clubs, and players and managers might not share the same sentiment. We're approaching a critical point concerning player welfare, potentially leading to conflicts between players and club owners."
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