Revealed: Manchester City’s prize total from UEFA for Champions League last-16 qualification | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City have secured the club a staggering prize pot following automatic qualification into the last-16 of this season’s Champions League.

Beyond the sporting significance of progressing through the league phase, the financial rewards attached to City’s European campaign continue to underline just how lucrative success in UEFA competitions has become.

Sustained Champions League progression remains a vital pillar in balancing spending with long-term financial sustainability, and with recent high-profile recruitment and plans for squad evolution, prize money plays an important role in shaping transfer flexibility.

There is also a wider sporting benefit to automatic qualification as Pep Guardiola’s side now avoids additional fixtures in an already congested calendar, which has been a recurring theme in recent comments regarding player fitness management, travel planning, and the handling of workloads.

Now, as per the Manchester Evening News, Manchester City received £9.56 million by securing a place in the top-eight of the league phase, in addition to the £16.18 million already awarded to all 36-teams in the Champions League this season.

In the league phase process, Manchester City won five matches against Napoli, Villarreal, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid and Galatasaray to bank the club £1.82 million each, while the draw against AS Monaco added a further £607,000.

Pep Guardiola’s side then also earned £239,000 for each position they finished above bottom. and having concluded the league phase in eighth position, their total for rankings came to £6.931 million.

As such, Manchester City have taken home a total of £42.378 million for their performances in the league phase of the competition, with more to come following the last-16 of the tournament and potentially further.

Looking ahead, further progression through the knockout stages would see that total rise sharply, with additional prize payments, coefficient rewards, and commercial exposure all adding to the overall financial impact.

A deep run could comfortably push Manchester City’s European earnings well beyond the £60 million mark, depending on results and final placement. For supporters, this also adds extra context to the club’s transfer activity and long-term planning.

As reported previously, City continue to balance significant investment in elite-level players with careful financial management, and Champions League income remains one of the most reliable mechanisms to sustain that model.