Man Utd handed 'financial penalty' due to little-known 'UEFA competition clause' after Europa League final defeat

Manchester United are set to miss out on an astronomical amount following their Europa League final defeat against Tottenham Hotspur.

Brennan Johnson’s first-half goal was enough to hand Spurs a 1-0 win against Man United, which saw the north London club secure their first trophy since 2008 and qualify for next season’s Champions League.

As for United, the impact of the defeat goes way beyond the perimeter of the football pitch.

Due to their position in the Premier League (16^th), combined with last night’s defeat, United will lose out on a huge amount of cash.

As reported by The Athletic in April, United were expected to earn a minimum of £85m if they qualified for the Champions League with “each [club] receiving a €18.6m (£15.7m) starting fee”.

Jim Ratcliffe will have several dilemmas this summer (Credit:Getty)

The piece also stated how “another €17.2m” was on offer if United won the Europa League.

Due to United failing to qualify for European competition, they will miss out on at least four home games, worth over £20m in match day revenue.

But that’s not all. No European football will also likely damage United from a commercial standpoint.

In the summer of 2023, United renewed their partnership with kit manufacturer Adidas until 2035.

The deal is worth £90m per year, but according to The Athletic’s report, the amount could reduce by £10m in every season United fail to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition.

The Red Devils were due to earn around £8m from their post-season tour of Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong, but this would essentially be swallowed by the Adidas penalty .

Man Utd could be handed a financial penalty (Credit:Getty)

How can Man Utd reduce their losses?

United could cut their losses by reducing players' salaries by 25 per cent. The cut was already in place this season, due to United's failure to qualify for the 2024/25 Champions League.

Another way of doing this would be by selling or releasing their highest earners with Marcus Rashford - currently on loan at Aston Villa - still uncertain about his future.

Meanwhile, Christian Eriksen, who earns a reported £150,000 per week looks set to leave the club upon the expiration of his contract. The futures of Jadon Sancho, Antony and Victor Lindelof are also unclear with all three linked with moves away from United.