New research released last week has indicated that the 16 clubs who have qualified for the knock-out stages of the Champions League have already pocketed around £40 million each.
The study, conducted on behalf of MasterCard, the tournament's official sponsor, found that teams such as Barcelona and Manchester United have already received £41.27 million from this year's competition.
Furthermore, sports business expert Professor Simon Chadwick, who led the research, claims that the team which eventually triumphs in Rome next May will net almost £100 million in total.
He said: "The competition continues to be an important source of revenue and commercial activity for clubs, especially for those that qualify for the knockout phase of the competition.
"This inevitably makes a significant contribution to the annual turnover of the clubs involved."
Professor Chadwick added the money is providing clubs with an invaluable source of income "given difficult operating conditions around the world" at present.
The study also found that getting to the final will offer prize money of £19.5 million, ticket sales of £17.84 million and commercial and marketing revenues worth £12.5 million.
Spanish champions Real Madrid have won the Champions League (or European Cup in its former guise) a record nine times.
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21 October 2010
21 October 2010
21 October 2010
20 October 2010
20 October 2010
