Manchester United miss out on €750,000 Champions League prize money

Manchester United’s inaugural UEFA Women’s Champions League campaign ended in heartbreak in Germany, and with it the club waved goodbye to as much as €750,000 in potential prize money. After a 3-2 home defeat to Bayern Munich in the quarter-final first leg, Marc Skinner’s side travelled to Munich needing a turnaround. Melvine Malard gave the visitors hope with an 11th-minute strike, but two Bayern goals in the space of three late minutes sealed a 2-1 away defeat and a 5-3 aggregate exit.

UEFA distributions show that a semi-final berth would have triggered an extra €250,000. Victory in the last four against either Real Madrid or Barcelona would have guaranteed another €550,000, while lifting the trophy would have topped the club’s earnings up to €750,000. Instead, United must settle for the approximate €1.365 million already secured for progressing from the group stage and reaching the last eight.

Attention now turns to the domestic season. With three Women’s Super League fixtures remaining, United sit fourth, level on points with Arsenal, who hold two games in hand. Only a third-place finish will guarantee a return to European football next term, leaving no margin for error in the final sprint.

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