Arsenal stand to lose out on up to €85m (£72m) next season after falling short of Champions League qualification.
Mikel Arteta's team may have closed out their campaign with a 5-1 home win over Everton yesterday but defeats to Newcastle United and neighbours Tottenham Hotspur before that cost them a return to the club game's premier competition. And the financial repercussions are severe as the money to be earned in the Europa League pales in comparison.
To put the gap into perspective Real Madrid, who face Liverpool in Saturday’s Champions League final, have already made €115m (£97.6m) in prize money this season while Europa League champions Eintracht Frankfurt made €20m (£17m).
Taking part in the Champions League group stages this season was worth a base fee of €15.64m (£13.2m) with every group win earning clubs a bonus €2.8m (£2.4m) and a draw worth €930,000 (£790,000).
Reaching the round of 16 led to an additional €9.6m (£8.1m); the eight quarter-finalists made €10.6m (£9m); four semi-finalists earned €12.5m (£10.6m); both finalists banked €15.5m (£13.1m) with the winners topped up by another €4.5m (£3.8m).
Then there are coefficient payments, a far bigger pot of TV money and matchday income to factor in. Arsenal ’s matchday income per game is around £1m and while they will still earn decent money for every game at the Emirates in the Europa League, sell outs are not guaranteed and ticket prices may end up being lower.
By comparison Europa League competitors for this campaign made €3.6m (£3m) for reaching the group stage, where a win was worth €630,000 (£535,000) and a draw €210,000 (£178,000).
Making it into the round of 16 led to a payment of €1.2m (£1m); the quarter-finalists got an additional €1.8m (£1.5m); €2.8m (£2.4m) for the last four; and the finalists made €4.6m (£3.9m) and €4m (£3.4m) going to the winners plus the more significant financial boost of Champions League football next season.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Where will Arsenal finish in the Premier League next season? Let us know in the comments
Asked if there is any satisfaction in reaching the Europa League, Arteta said after the Everton game: "Today, I don’t get much, if I’m honest. I’m still in pain. I need the dust to settle, I need to go and get a few days on holiday because I don’t think today I’m going to reflect the season the way it is.
"But at the same time, I’m very grateful for everybody supporting our club, the way they’re giving us confidence, respect and motivation to drive forward because I think they believe in what we’re doing. But when you have it there - I’m a winner and I hate losing and we lost something we could win. That’s why I’m in pain."
Missing out on the Champions League is likely to make life in the transfer market a little more difficult for Arteta and technical director Edu with several top targets preferring to be in the top competition.
