Solidarity payments
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Our elite club competitions do not just reward teams competing for silverware. Every season, we distribute a percentage of our revenue to non-participating clubs.
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We aim to reinvest as much as possible of our club competition revenue back into men's and women's football – not only through rewards to participating clubs, but also solidarity payments to those who fail to reach the group stages and those who do not take part at all.
The principle of financial solidarity with clubs across all levels of the football pyramid is rooted in the European sports model. It helps to level the playing field between clubs, leagues and associations, and fosters a more competitive balance. Reinvesting and sharing revenue also boosts the development of football at grassroots and youth levels.
Since the 1999/2000 season, our solidarity payments for non-participating men's clubs have risen from €32.9 million to €177.2 million.
How UEFA solidarity payments work
Each league and/or member association determines how our solidarity payments are distributed to clubs in their top domestic division and, in some cases, the next division down. However, we oblige clubs to use the money for investment in development initiatives.
UEFA men’s club competitions
Our annual solidarity payments go to clubs eliminated in the preliminary stages of the UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Conference League, as well as other top-tier clubs that failed to qualify through their domestic leagues.
For our elite men's club competitions, these payments are earmarked for investment in youth development programmes and/or local community schemes. In 2022/23, the amount available for solidarity payments was equivalent to 4% of the three competitions’ cumulative gross revenue.
For our new 2024–27 club competition cycle, we will almost double the proportion of total revenue distributed to teams not taking part in our three competitions. Our memorandum of understanding with the European Club Association (ECA) will see an additional 30% of the net surplus – up to a maximum of €35 million – channelled to non-participating clubs.
UEFA women’s club competition
Since 2021/22, associations represented by at least one club in the UEFA Women's Champions League have been eligible for solidarity payments to distribute equally among non-participating clubs. We require women's clubs to invest these payments exclusively in developing the game.
In 2022/23, this amounted to 20% of the total amount available through the competition's financial distribution model.