UEFA’s revamped Champions League is sharing more cash than ever—but the biggest clubs are still pulling far ahead thanks to a system built to reward Europe’s elite.

UEFA’s revamped Champions League format has delivered more prize money to clubs this season, but early figures show that Europe’s elite continue to benefit the most from the competition’s financial structure.

Seven of the eight clubs finishing in the top tier of the league phase also rank among the world’s 10 richest teams, according to Swiss Ramble’s 2024–25 Money League. Sporting CP were the only exception, requiring a stoppage-time winner on the final matchday to secure qualification. Five of those seven clubs compete in the Premier League.

Under UEFA’s distribution model, revenue is shared through three main channels: a fixed participation fee, performance-based prize money and the so-called value pillar, which is calculated using club market value and UEFA coefficients.

Each of the 36 clubs received a participation fee of €18.6 million. Prize money was awarded at €2.1 million per win and €700,000 per draw during the league phase, alongside additional payments based on final league position. Each place in the standings was worth €301,000, with bottom side Kairat Almaty earning €301,000 and table-toppers Arsenal collecting €10.8 million.

The top eight teams earned an additional €11 million for automatic qualification to the last 16, while clubs advancing through the knockout playoff round received €1 million.

Arsenal currently lead the prize-money rankings after completing a perfect league phase, earning €40.6 million from results and bonuses. However, they rank only fourth in estimated total Champions League revenue, largely due to UEFA’s value pillar.

Swiss Ramble estimates the value pillar to be worth €853 million, with 73 per cent allocated through five-year UEFA coefficients and club value, and the remaining 27 per cent based on 10-year coefficients. Media markets and historical performance play a major role in determining payouts.

Manchester City are projected to receive the highest value-pillar payment at €45.4 million, followed by Paris Saint-Germain (€44.1 million), Bayern Munich (€43 million), Liverpool (€42.5 million), Real Madrid (€41.4 million), Chelsea (€39.9 million) and Arsenal (€37 million).

Several smaller-market clubs, including Slavia Prague, Galatasaray, Qarabag, Pafos and Kairat, are estimated to earn less than €10 million from the value pillar, despite some advancing to the playoff stage.

When participation fees, prize money and value-pillar payments are combined, Bayern Munich are estimated to have earned just under €100 million by the end of the league phase. Four other clubs have surpassed €90 million, while 20 of the 36 participants have earned at least €50 million.

Marseille and Villarreal, both eliminated, earned €53 million and €46 million respectively. Villarreal failed to win a match during the league phase. Kairat, despite recording a similar performance, earned less than half of Villarreal’s total, largely due to differences in value-pillar allocation.

The figures underline growing concerns that, despite increased overall revenue, the Champions League’s financial model continues to reinforce the dominance of Europe’s wealthiest clubs.