Chelsea will be expected to finish the 2024/25 campaign with another piece of silverware in the trophy cabinet. Not in Premier League title contention and also exiting both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup early on, the Blues' trophy hopes very much rest on their Europa Conference League campaign.
Enzo Maresca's side have made an excellent start to this year's competition and have won nine of their 10 games in Europe in 2024/25. Starting off in the play-off round before advancing to the league phase, Chelsea have a quarter-final double-header against Legia Warsaw to look forward to next month after beating F.C. Copenhagen over two legs in the round of 16.
Chelsea are firm favourites to win UEFA's third club competition, with Real Betis and Fiorentina also very much in the mix for the trophy. It may not be Chelsea's European competition of choice as they are usually Champions League regulars but it is something that can help boost the club's finances.
As ever, prize money is on offer for all teams competing in the Europa Conference League, which is in addition to the 'value pillar' which is a combination of payments based on a 10-year club coefficient ranking and the broadcast revenue share of all participating countries. Clubs who reached the 36-team league phase all earned £2.653million and they had the opportunity to top up their money by securing £334,000 for a league-phase win, with £111,000 for a league-phase draw.
Additional money is then on offer for how far a club progresses in the competition, with £3.348million to be awarded to each team reaching the final. Whoever triumphs in Poland at the end of May then receives a further £2.512million on top of their money for making the showpiece finale.
Ahead of Chelsea's next Europa Conference League fixture against Legia Warsaw, football.london has decided to look at their prize money earnings from this year's competition so far.
Europa Conference League prize money
Winner: £5.860million
Runner-up: £3.348million
Semi-final: £2.092million
Quarter-final: £1.088million
Round of 16: £669,000
Top eight in league phase: £334,000
League-phase win: £334,000
League-phase draw: £111,000
Reaching the league phase: £2.653million
Play-off round participation: £146,000
Chelsea's prize money so far
Chelsea earned just over £2million from the newly-formed league phase. Playing six league games rather than eight in the Champions League or Europa League, the Blues won all six of their matches.
Chelsea 4-2 Gent (£334,000)
Panathinkaikos 1-4 Chelsea (£334,000)
Chelsea 8-0 Noah (£334,000)
Heidenheim 0-2 Chelsea (£334,000)
Astana 1-3 Chelsea (£334,000)
Chelsea 5-1 Shamrock Rovers (£334,000)
Total = £2.004million
Chelsea then boosted their funds with £844,000 after finishing top of the table, as each position in the standings was worth just over £23,000. That figure was in addition to the £2.653million for reaching the league phase and the £146,000 from their play-off round participation.
A top-eight finish secured another £334,000, which was then topped up by £669,000 for reaching the round of 16 and a further £1.088million for making the quarter-finals. If you add the above numbers together and also include the £2.004million from their performance in the league phase then it brings about a grand total of £7.738million.
Play-off round participation: £146,000
Reaching the league phase: £2.653million
Finishing top in the league phase: £844,000
Top eight in league phase: £334,000
Round of 16: £669,000
Quarter-final: £1.088million
Total = £5.734million
Total combined = £7.738million
What can Chelsea still earn?
Chelsea can secure another £2.092million if they beat Legia Warsaw in next month's quarter-final double-header to make the final four. A place in the final would see the Blues earn £3.348million but that number would increase to £5.860million if they win the final in Wroclaw, Poland in May.
So, there is the possibility that Chelsea can earn an extra £7.952million in prize money in this season's Europa Conference League. Add that to the £7.738million banked so far and that would total a potential windfall of £15.690million in prize money across the European season.
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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