Earning a Whopping £2.848 Billion in the Premier League this Season!
Struggling with finances and lack of fame: examining minimal boost in Liverpool's club prize money following title win
Get ready, football fans, because this season is going to be a money-making extravaganza in the Premier League! The new TV contract kicks off next season, with a total sum of £6.7 billion split between Sky Sports, TNT Sport, and Amazon Prime Video for the broadcasting rights of matches from 2025 to 2029. That's a nominal 4% increase compared to the current deal, and more matches for viewers to enjoy!
But for now, let's dive into the financial bonanza of the 2024/25 season, which is still governed by the terms of the old contract. Sky will air 128 matches live, TNT will broadcast 52, and Amazon will show 20, bringing British fans access to watch 200 out of 380 matches. For each match, teams will receive a chunk of prize money from the Premier League. Last year, the grand total came to an impressive £2.848 billion. Since the new contract doesn't start until the summer, this generous fund remains in place for the 2024/25 season in England.
The prize money is divided into three categories: domestic, international, and commercial. The domestic section includes earnings from British broadcasters, while the international part includes earnings from all overseas broadcasters. The commercial part represents the league's earnings from advertisers. Here's the breakdown:
- Domestic: £1.334 billion
- International: £1.351 billion
- Commercial: £164 million
Clubs get their hands on this cash based on three key performance indicators: base payments, position in the league table, and the number of matches shown live.
- Base payments from the domestic part: £624 million, with each team receiving £31.2 million.
- Payments for the number of matches shown (from the domestic part): £354.7 million
- Payments for position in the league table (from the domestic part): £354.7 million
- Base payments from the international part: £1.114 million, with each team pocketing £55.7 million.
- Payments for position in the league table (from the international part): £237 million
- Base payments from the commercial part: all £164 million, with each team earning £8.2 million.
The funds are disbursed proportionally based on the conditions met. For example, the team at the bottom of the league last season received £2.8 million, while the champions pocketed £56.4 million. The earnings from British TV are distributed using a complex principle: all clubs are guaranteed to reap at least £9.3 million for every 10 TV matches, even if there are fewer broadcasts. Each additional match shown, as calculated by Sport, generates approximately £0.837 million for the club.
Using these calculations, we can estimate Liverpool's prize money for winning the championship. Here's the breakdown:
- £31.2 million - equal payments from the domestic part
- £33.8 million - payments for first place from the domestic part
- £55.7 million - equal payments from the international part
- £22.6 million - payments for first place from the international part
- £8.2 million - PL commercial part
The remaining amount is the income from British TV, which is determined by the number of matches selected for broadcast each month. The better the team performs, the more interest from broadcasters, making Liverpool the perfect example. In February 2025, only one of their matches was not selected for broadcast, against Southampton. However, from early April until the final match, all of their games will be broadcast live on Sky Sports. Viewers simply couldn't get enough of the title chase and the reactions of the rivals.
In total, the PL should transfer £176.7 million to the English champions this summer (or slightly less than €208 million at the current exchange rate). Last year, the team received £171 million, while the first-placed Manchester City took home £175.9 million. This prize money is just the centralized payments from the PL. Liverpool will surely receive additional bonuses from their own sponsors, as well as income from tickets, merchandise, and other deals, though exact figures won't be available until the end of the year.
However, we can still estimate the earnings from other tournaments. Despite winning the main stage of the 2024/25 Champions League, Liverpool was eliminated in the first playoff round, losing to PSG. According to our calculations, UEFA should transfer the team £98.13M for this run.
The club also participated in English national cups, but these are low-paying tournaments. Teams earn several times more from ticket revenues than from prize money. Liverpool's loss in the League Cup final to Newcastle brought in a paltry £50,000. In the 2024/25 FA Cup, the club passed one round before being eliminated by Plymouth, earning another £115,000.
In total, Liverpool earned £260.27M (or €306.26M) in the 2024/25 season through sports results. The champions might not have smashed the record for prize money for their 20th championship, but the season was nothing short of spectacular. In fact, the management is planning to set a record transfer budget in the summer to aim for the 21st championship, which would make the club the most decorated in English history. And let's not forget that a year ago, few believed that replacing Jürgen Klopp with Arne Slot would be such a shrewd move!
- The new TV contract, starting in 2025, will definitely see an increase in revenues for the Premier League, with a total of £6.7 billion allocated for broadcasting rights.
- For the 2024/25 season, Newcastle United will watch the football action on British TV, as they will have access to 380 matches, out of which 200 will be live.
- The financial business of the Premier League in the 2024/25 season saw a collective revenue of £2.848 billion, with football clubs receiving their share based on their performance in domestic, international, and commercial aspects.
- Liverpool, the English champions, watched their prize money from the Premier League increase from £171 million in the previous season to an estimated £176.7 million in the 2024/25 season, despite not breaking the record for the highest prize money.
- The Champions League run saw Liverpool receive a considerable sum of £98.13M, but their participation in English national cups, such as the League Cup and FA Cup, barely brought in any significant revenues.
- With the substantial earnings from European-leagues, premier-league football, and sponsorships, Liverpool plans to set a new record transfer budget in the summer, eyeing the 21st championship and becoming the most decorated club in English football history.
