CWC: European clubs already earned the most

The FIFA Club World Cup has faced plenty of criticism during the group stage of the competition. Empty stands, match stoppages due to heat and severe weather, and the overall lack of interest shown by many clubs in the early games... But once the "play-in" phase ended and the group stage concluded, it was time for what everyone had been waiting for – the Round of 16, the knockout stage, and the promised real spectacle. While fans, statisticians, and neutral football lovers count the goals, attendance, and everything else that marked the group phase of the Club World Cup, the teams are counting the millions they’ve earned so far. The total prize fund for the tournament is roughly 853,535,836 euros. So far, 632,221,200 has been distributed to the participating clubs.

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Before a ball was even kicked in the first match, it was already known that 447,930,000 would be allocated, with each of the 16 teams that progressed to the knockout stage receiving 6,399,000. That means an additional 102,384,000 went to club coffers before the knockout round even began. As much as 57% of that amount (362,183,400) went to European clubs, meaning each of the 12 European teams received an average of 30,203,280. It was immediately clear that European sides would take the largest share of FIFA’s "cream," so, for example, Porto and Atletico Madrid—despite being eliminated in the group stage—earned more than Al Hilal, Inter Miami, and Monterrey, who advanced.

South American teams (six in total) earned 122,007,600, while all other participating teams combined collected 147,774,240. Most of the prize money has already been distributed, and what's left—220,978,800—will be shared among the 16 remaining teams, with 85,320,000 reserved for the eventual champion.

Top Earners So Far at the FIFA Club World Cup (in euros):

Manchester City – 44,110,400

Real Madrid – 41,294,800

Bayern Munich – 38,479,320

Paris Saint-Germain – 36,516,960

Chelsea – 34,554,600

Borussia Dortmund – 33,445,440

Inter Milan – 30,954,096

Benfica – 25,510,680

Flamengo – 23,633,640

Botafogo – 22,780,440

Fluminense – 22,780,440

Palmeiras – 22,780,440

Juventus – 22,695,120

Porto – 20,476,800

Atletico Madrid – 20,220,840

Al Hilal – 18,002,520

Inter Miami – 18,002,520

Monterrey – 18,002,520

River Plate – 15,528,240

Boca Juniors – 14,675,040

Salzburg – 13,480,560

Mamelodi Sundowns – 10,750,320

Al Ahly – 9,897,120

Al Ain – 9,897,120

Esperance – 9,897,120

Los Angeles FC – 9,043,920

Pachuca – 8,190,720

Seattle Sounders – 8,190,720

Ulsan Hyundai – 8,190,720

Urawa Red Diamonds – 8,190,720

Wydad Casablanca – 8,190,720

Auckland City – 3,924,720