The gap between the haves and the have-nots continues to widen in European football with Rangers learning the hard way about the cost of not qualifying for the Champions League.
The Europa League draw saw as tough a challenge as Philippe Clement could have been presented with, however, the manager can be proud of how far the squad has come – an outside chance of qualifying for the top eight was still on before the final fixture against Union Saint Gilloise.
Unlike in previous seasons, Rangers already knew who they could play in the play-off round and the last 16 with Athletic Club or Man Utd waiting the winners of a tie against Elfsborg, if positions stayed the same, but how much money does finishing eighth make them?
How much have Rangers earned for Europa League position
When Rangers reached the final in 2021/22, winning still wouldn’t have been enough to make the same amount of money as just qualifying for the group stages.
A fact made clear when Giovanni van Bronckhorst followed up the epic run to Seville by doing just that.
At least the tag of “worst Champions League team ever” has been taken by someone else now.
Had Rangers finished first in the league phase, £4.2m would have been the reward, compared to £19.1m for the premier competition.
For finishing eighth, Rangers have made £3.76m (ninth is almost £2m less) with the same position in the Champions League getting nearly £20m for their efforts.
What Rangers missed on with Champions League failure
Across the city, and the financial gap is only getting bigger with Celtic qualifying for the knockout stages.
The draw couldn’t have been kinder, but they did all they had to do against the teams that they were expected to beat and have been handsomely rewarded.
Bayern Munich or Real Madrid await as does a reward of £4.3m, more than Rangers would have got for topping the Europa League league phase, although only £600,000 in terms of price money for the final positions.
With qualification only going to get harder in the future, the cost of not making the Champions League is bigger than it has ever been, despite a much needed boost of funds.
