UEFA announces EURO club contributions

Clubs who contributed to making UEFA EURO 2008™ such a success are set to receive solidarity contributions after UEFA finalised the calculations on the amount of money to be handed to national associations following this summer's tournament.

Memorandum of Understanding
These contributions form part of the agreement of the historic Memorandum of Understanding, signed between UEFA and the European Club Association (ECA) on 21 January 2008 (click here) that allowed for the dissolution of the so-called G14 and enabled harmony to return to European club football, and which was then approved by the UEFA Executive Committee at their Zagreb meeting of 29 to 30 January 2008. The Memorandum of Understanding followed a letter of intent signed by FIFA, UEFA and representatives of the European clubs at the Home of FIFA, in Zurich, on 15 January 2008 (click here).

Target total amount
The target total amount set for distribution to the national associations from UEFA EURO 2008™ was fixed at €43.5 million. For UEFA EURO 2012™, the target total amount to be distributed is set at €55 million, provided the final financial results of UEFA EURO 2012™ are substantially similar to those of UEFA EURO 2008™. A total of 180 clubs are set to benefit from their contribution to the success of the final round of UEFA EURO 2008™, and together they represent 24 of UEFA's 53 national associations. For the full list of the clubs, and the total amount received by each club, click here. For the full amount per national association, click here.

'New harmony'
UEFA President Michel Platini said: "It is a testament to the new harmony in European football, and the willingness of associations and clubs to cooperate for the good of the game, that we are able to deliver to the clubs a tangible benefit for their contribution to UEFA EURO 2008™. We witnessed a truly fantastic UEFA European Football Championship this summer, both on and off the pitch, one where respect was shown by players, officials and fans alike, and I am pleased that the clubs can now also be a part of that."

Leading beneficiaries
The top three clubs providing players for UEFA EURO 2008™ in order were first Werder Bremen, with a total payment of €1,093,732, Olympique Lyonnais (€1,039,115) and FC Bayern München (€1,018,109). Furthermore, a number of clubs currently not playing in their top division (Grazer AK, NK Istra Pula, Birmingham City FC, Reading FC, Southampton FC, Sheffield United FC, FC Metz, RC Lens, ES Troyes AC, 1. FC Kaiserslautern, FSV Mainz 05, KS Hutnik Kraków, GKS Górnik Leczna, Clube Desportivo das Aves, FC Kuban Krasnodar, FC Torpedo Moskva, RC Celta de Vigo and Vestel Manisaspor) also received a share. Clubs from national associations such as Belgium, Denmark, Ukraine and Moldova, who had no national team at UEFA EURO 2008™, will also benefit.

Payment calculation 
The club's share was calculated by the "per player per day" amount multiplied by the number of days each player was at UEFA EURO 2008™. This started two weeks before the first match of a player's national team until the day after his team was eliminated. From this, the relevant percentage of the share was calculated to be passed on to the club(s) with which any player was registered in the preceding two years prior to the start of the final tournament.

Club Application Form
In order to be eligible for a share of the benefits from UEFA EURO 2008™ and for UEFA EURO 2012™, clubs were asked to fill in, sign and return a Club Application Form to UEFA, in which they agreed to support national team competitions and to comply with the FIFA regulations on the release of players. Some 636 clubs duly filled in, signed and returned the forms.

'Historic moment'
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Chairman of the European Club Association, said: "The European Club Association very much welcomes today's announcement. It marks a historic moment in recognising and rewarding the important contribution that football clubs make to the success of European level national team competitions such as EURO 2008™. It also underlines the collaborative spirit within the football family in Europe as together we work to shape the future of our game."