Arsenal won the Premier League. They are projected to earn £198.7 million from the domestic prize pool. That number, on its own, sounds like a lot of money.
Then you look at what the other four European champions banked this season and it stops sounding like a number. It starts sounding like a problem.
Barcelona won La Liga and earned around €170 million. Bayern Munich won the Bundesliga and earned €83.4 million. Inter Milan won Serie A for around €81.9 million. PSG won Ligue 1 and earned €30.1 million from the central pool.
Yes, you read that last one correctly. The reigning Champions League holders earned less from winning their own league than Wolverhampton Wanderers earned for finishing bottom of the Premier League.
Welcome to European football in 2026, where the leagues no longer compete with each other. They just exist on the same continent.
1️⃣ Premier League: Arsenal £198.7m
💰 £3 billion+ distributed for the first time · Arsenal earn £198.7m · Each league position worth £3.76m · Wolves (20th) earn £117.7m
The Premier League will distribute over £3 billion to its 20 clubs for the first time this season, up from £2.8bn in each of the past three. Arsenal lead the way at £198.7m — £23.8m more than Liverpool earned for winning the title last year.
The driver is merit money. Each league position was worth £3.76m to clubs this season, up from £2.65m last year. Arsenal alone earned £75.2m in merit payments.
The wild stat: Wolves finished 20th and earned £117.7m. That is more than Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and PSG earned for winning their leagues. Bottom of the Premier League pays better than a Scudetto.
2️⃣ La Liga: Barcelona around €170m
💰 Barcelona and Real Madrid both projected above €170m · Bottom club takes home ~€41m · 50% equal split, 25% merit, 25% social impact
Barcelona clinched La Liga with a 2-0 El Clasico win over Real Madrid in October. Mbappe finished as top scorer with 24 goals, which is the kind of season Madrid fans would have enjoyed if Madrid had not finished second and sacked their manager halfway through it.
La Liga's audiovisual model spreads half the pot equally, with 25 per cent on sporting merit and another 25 per cent on "social impact" — league code for how big your fanbase is. This is why Real Madrid and Barcelona stay rich no matter what happens on the pitch.
3️⃣ Bundesliga: Bayern Munich €83.4m
💰 Bayern earn €83.4m · Dortmund €76m · Leverkusen €75.5m · Bottom club (Hamburg) take €31.4m · Sheffield United (PL 20th, 2023-24) earned €109.7m
Harry Kane scored 33 league goals. Vincent Kompany won the Bundesliga at the first attempt. Bayern's reward: €83.4m.
For context: Sheffield United, who finished 20th in the Premier League in 2023-24, took home €109.7m. The 20th-place team in England earned more than the champion of Germany. The German model gives you the best matchday culture in Europe and the most financially constrained top flight of the big five. Pick your battles.
4️⃣ Serie A: Inter Milan around €81.9m
💰 ~€1.5bn total pool · €37.5m per club base payment · Historical coefficient dating to 1946 · Napoli won Scudetto, earned €67.8m — Inter (2nd) earned €81.9m
Inter won their 21st Scudetto with three games to spare, sealed by mid-May, with Lautaro Martinez lifting the trophy. The chaos came below them. Milan's final-day loss to Cagliari pushed them out of the top four. Como qualified for the Champions League. Como.
In Italy, you can win the league and still earn less than the team that finished second. Napoli proved it last year — they won the Scudetto and got €67.8m. Inter, who finished second, got €81.9m. Capitalism, but make it Calcio.
5️⃣ Ligue 1: PSG €30.1m
💰 €142m total central pool for the entire league · PSG earn €30.1m · Bottom club takes €4.37m · PSG's total club revenue: €837m (mostly UCL and commercial)
Ligue 1 collapsed its TV deal with DAZN after one season. The streaming service could not get enough subscribers to break even. The league launched its own platform, Ligue 1+, which has actually exceeded expectations and crossed one million subscribers. Good news, sort of.
The bad news: the central pool distributed to clubs from domestic rights this season is around €142m total. The entire league. PSG, who beat Inter in last year's Champions League final, will earn €30.1m from central distribution. PSG offset this with €837m in total club revenue last year, most of it from Champions League prize money and commercial deals.
6️⃣ The Champions League: Where Everyone Gets Paid
💰 €2.467bn prize pool · €18.62m just for the league phase · Winner takes ~€144m total · Final: May 30, 2026, Puskás Aréna, Budapest
UEFA's 2025-26 Champions League prize pool sits at €2.467 billion. The winner will earn anywhere between €130m and €150m before the final whistle even goes. Here is the structure: €18.62m just for showing up to the league phase. €2.1m per win, €700,000 per draw. €11m for the round of 16. €12.5m for the quarter-finals. €15m for the semis. €18.5m for reaching the final. €6.5m on top for actually lifting the trophy.
The eventual winner is looking at around €144m — what PSG took home for winning it last season. The Champions League winner will earn more from one tournament than the champions of Germany, Italy, and France earned from winning their entire domestic seasons combined.
The final is Saturday, May 30, 2026, at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest. Two clubs will walk onto that pitch and one of them will leave with a cheque that resets their whole financial calendar.
The Big Five Is Now a Sentence With the Premier League at One End
In pounds sterling, the 2025-26 champions earned roughly:
| League | Champion | Domestic Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Premier League | Arsenal | £198.7m |
| La Liga | Barcelona | ~£148m |
| Bundesliga | Bayern Munich | ~£72m |
| Serie A | Inter Milan | ~£70m |
| Ligue 1 | PSG | ~£26m |
Arsenal alone earned more from English domestic prize money than the champions of Germany, Italy and France combined. Wolves, bottom of the Premier League, earned more than Bayern Munich, the champion of Germany.
This is why the Saudi Pro League opens its chequebook and gets calls back. This is why MLS keeps growing. This is why Xabi Alonso negotiated final say on transfers before signing for Chelsea. The only league with the financial firepower to compete with the Premier League is one that can't legally print money fast enough yet.
The Big Five used to be a competitive ranking. It is now a sentence with the Premier League at one end and four leagues at the other, with the Champions League sitting in the middle as the only thing keeping European football pretending to be a level playing field.
Saturday night in Budapest will decide who gets to pretend hardest.
