Champions League prize money revealed: Bayern earns 100 million euros just after the group stage, even the last place gets over 20 million euros.

Why do top clubs in Europe's biggest leagues aggressively vie for Champions League qualification? It's because the Champions League is highly profitable; even the lowest-ranked team in the league stage secures over 20 million euros in bonuses. Teams like Bayern can pocket close to 100 million euros after the group phase this season, truly cashing in big.

Professional data media Football Meets Data has compiled the current prize money situation for the three tiers of European competitions (Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League):

• In the Champions League: Bayern leads with the highest prize money at 99.8 million euros; the lowest is Almaty Kairat with 21.2 million euros.
• In the Europa League: Roma tops the list with 22.1 million euros; the lowest is Malmö with 660 euros.
• In the Europa Conference League: Shakhtar Donetsk earns the most at 10.3 million euros; Shelbourne has the least with 4.4 million euros.

This shows that qualifying for the Champions League group stage guarantees at least 20 million euros in income. Bayern’s earnings after the group stage are equivalent to buying a player like Kane, which explains why the Bavarian giants are so wealthy. Some ask, Arsenal went undefeated, so why is their Champions League prize money less than Bayern’s? That’s because Arsenal’s European competition coefficient is lower than Bayern’s, reflecting their less consistent success in recent years, while Bayern’s Champions League performance has remained very steady.