Despite the 3-1 loss to Dortmund, Barcelona will generate significant financial gains from its participation in the Champions League this season.
The Catalan club reached the semi-finals with a 5-3 aggregate victory, bringing it much closer to resolving its financial crisis next summer.
In the knockout stages, UEFA awards financial bonuses only to clubs that advance to the next round, unlike in the group stage, where they receive bonuses for a win (€2.7 million) and a draw (€0.7 million).
For Barcelona, qualifying for the semi-finals would have meant an additional bonus of €15 million, a significant amount, given that the club’s budget expectation was to only reach the quarter-finals.
Barcelona’s total revenue from sporting performances in the Champions League this season reached €116.563 million, a figure close to the €117.730 million the club generated in the 2018-19 season when it reached the semi-finals.
Even if Barcelona doesn’t reach the final, it is certain to break its revenue record. This is due to the increased share of the “market pool” (sponsors and television rights, in addition to domestic and continental results over the past five years) within the new concept of the “value pillar” for this season, which also includes historical rankings in European competitions over the past decade.
In this way, Barcelona is close to achieving the 1:1 rule and will be able to conclude summer signings without the usual crises of recent years.
