Liverpool set for World Cup financial boost from…

Liverpool set for World Cup financial boost from current and former players

When the World Cup gets underway in Qatar this month there will be a number of current Liverpool players representing their countries.

Virgil van Dijk will turn out for the Netherlands, Alisson and Fabinho will wear the yellow of Brazil, Diogo Jota will play for Portugal, Darwin Nunez will turn out for Uruguay, Ibrahima Konate will represent France and Jordan Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold will be part of the England side in Doha.

For those Liverpool players who aren't at the World Cup through either international retirement, as is the case for Joel Matip, or for those whose nations simply did not qualify for the tournament, they will be heading to a warm weather training camp and mini-competition in Dubai, with Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz , Roberto Firmino and Thiago Alcantara among the heavy Reds artillery to make that particular trip.

But while the mid-season break for a major international tournament is new territory, and the effects that it will have on the remainder of campaigns across Europe still something of an unknown, teams whose players are representing their countries in Qatar will be earning $10,000 (£8,963) per day for their clubs for the duration that they are away.

The payments are part of FIFA's Club Benefits Programme, which the governing body says is to recognise the contribution of clubs towards the tournament. In total, $209m (£187.3m) has been dedicated towards the programme, which benefited more than 400 clubs across 63 nations at the previous World Cup.

All 32 nations will get $10m from FIFA for participating in the group stage having received $2m to pay for pre-tournament camps and other preparation.

Thirty-eight English clubs earned a total of $37,406,940 from players participating in Russia four years ago, with Manchester City banking $5,003,440 and neighbours United making $3,656,360. Arsenal made $2,218,720 in 2018, Chelsea earned $3,835,357.50, Liverpool received $2,585,205 and Tottenham Hotspur got $4,385,792.50.

FIFA said that compensation will be paid to all clubs for which a player has played in the two years prior to the World Cup. FIFA’s total fund for the World Cup is worth about $700m (£632.3m) and the federation of the eventual winners will earn $50m (£45m).

As part of the FIFA rules around payments, where they are paid to the clubs where players spent the previous two years of their careers, Liverpool would receive a share of the combined $20,000 per day for the presence of Senegal's Sadio Mane, who left Anfield for Bayern Munich in the summer, and Japan's Takumi Minamino, who sealed a summer switch to French side Monaco. Liverpool could make a considerable sum from the pair despite them no longer being Liverpool players.

Mane has been selected in Senegal's final squad for Qatar despite sustaining an injury to his fibula last week for Bayern, something that will likely see him miss at least the first week of action.

Another former Red who left the club in the summer, Marko Grujic, has an outside bet of making the Serbia squad, although another summer departure, Divock Origi, isn't expected to be part of the Belgium setup, having struggled so far in his spell in Italy with AC Milan.

One player who Liverpool won't receive the $10,000 per day for will be summer signing Nunez, with his sum going to former club Benfica.

The Reds could earn between £1.3m and £2m depending on the success of above players in Qatar, with Brazil and England going deeper into the tournament of the most value to the club.

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