Celtic gulf to Rangers in UEFA prize money revealed as Hoops bank nearly 3 times as much as their rivals
Celtic’s run to the knockout play-off round of the revamped Champions League has seen them bank nearly £28million in prize money from UEFA this season – nearly three times the amount Rangers received during their Europa League campaign.
The Hoops received €18.62million (£16million) for simply appearing in the league phase.
They then banked an additional €8.4million (£7.2million) from the three wins, three draws and two defeats that saw Brendan Rodgers lead Celtic out of the group stage of Europe’s premiere competition for the first time since 2013.
Celtic then received €4.4million for reaching the play-off round and then a further €1million (£857,335) after bowing out to Bayern Munich in the first knockout round in an agonising defeat over two legs.
That has taken their total incomings from UEFA for the campaign to €32.42million (£27.8million)
In comparison, Rangers enjoyed a strong run to the last eight of the Europa League before falling to a 2-0 aggregate loss to Athletic Bilbao last week.
The Gers banked €4.31million (3.7million) for entering the revamped league phase.
Under previous manager, Philippe Clement, the Light Blues were one of the eight teams to qualify directly for the last 16 of the competition after scoring four wins, two draws and two losses in their eight games to bank €2.1million. Their top eight finish also saw them clock an additional €600,000 (£514.401) bonus.
Their automatic qualification for the last 16 saw them pick up a further €1.75million (£1.5million).
Interim Ibrox boss Barry Ferguson then took over ahead of the last 16 showdown with Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce and guided his team into the quarter finals by defeating the Istanbul giants on penalties at Ibrox before losing out to Bilbao in the Basque country after a goalless draw in Govan in the first leg.
That run to the last eight has seen Rangers receive €11.24million (approximately £9.6million) in prize money from their Europa League exploits this season, a £18.2million difference from Celtic’s Champions League run.
Celtic and Rangers have played each other 445 times in major competitions; Rangers have won 171 matches, Celtic 170, and 104 ended in a draw. The clubs have large fan bases around Glasgow and Scotland and have supporters clubs in many towns throughout Scotland and Northern Ireland and in cities around the world.
A study from the CIES Football Observatory has revealed that Celtic contribute more fans to total league attendances than any other club in world football. Taking a look at matches from 2013-2018, the research found that Celtic contributed 36.5% of the Scottish Premiership’s entire attendance.
