Ajax qualified for the quarter-finals of the Europa League without any problems on Thursday evening. After a 3-0 home win over Young Boys, the leader of the Eredivisie in Bern was 0-2 too strong for the Swiss top club. A place in the last eight in the tournament is good for a bonus of one and a half million euros. This European season, the team from Amsterdam collected more than 43 million euros in premiums, most of which comes from the Champions League. The millions that Ajax has earned in the Europa League so far can be counted on one hand.
Despite the fact that the group stage of the Champions League was played in empty stadiums, Ajax held an amount of 40.2 million euros in premiums at the billions ball, as it became clear in the annual report. Qualification for the group stage amounted to 15.25 million euros, while more than 19 million came in from a UEFA game based on the coefficient ranking. A victory in the Champions League was good for 2.7 million euros, a draw was earned 900,000 euros in the group stage.
That the differences with the Europa League are enormous, Ajax experiences firsthand. A spot in the last 32 of the Europa League earned half a million euros, eliminating Lille OSC another 1.1 million and qualifying for the quarter-finals 1.5 million euros. According to The Telegraph the club is left with almost nothing from the premiums from the Europa League. A large part of the premiums goes to, among other things, the rent of the Johan Cruijff ArenA, travel expenses and premiums for the players.
Higher amounts can be earned in the next phase of the Europa League. When coach Erik ten Hag’s team manages to reach the semi-finals, another 2.4 million euros will go to Amsterdam. A place in the final is good for an amount of 4.5 million euros, while the winner receives another 4 million euros. Because supporters are not welcome at Ajax in Europe this season, the club misses out on two million euros every home match. If Ajax succeeds in securing the national title, the club will be assured of qualification for the Champions League and thus approximately forty million euros in revenue.
Arsenal, Granada, AS Roma, Dinamo Zagreb, Manchester United, Slavia Prague and Villarreal are the possible opponents of Ajax in the quarter-finals. There are again no restrictions for the draw. This means that clubs from the same countries can draw each other. The games will be played on Thursday, April 8 and 15. The draw will be held on Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. and can be seen live on ESPN.