With the season almost over and the focus on the title run in, we take a look back at the ill fated European campaign and how it has not only cost the club millions, but how the failure to qualify for the group stages of the Champions League or Europa League hits the players hard in their pockets.
As the teams performances in Europe were heavily criticised, and manager, Neil Lennon, questioned some players commitment to the club, there is no denying that the players will now be counting the cost of their European failures as financial experts give an insight of now the players wage packet has taken a serious hit this season which could explain the lack of motivation in Celtic’s domestic game.
Speaking to Football Insider, financial expert Kieran MaGuire, breaks down the bonus system and how qualification for the Champions League group stages affected the Paradise wage bill by a whopping 50%, “Wages are never broken down into individual components but bonuses do come under wages in public documentation.
“If we take a look at the Celtic wage bill then we can see that it certainly increased substantially in those years when they’ve made progress in Europe.
“I think they will be heavily incentivised to get into Europe because the SPFL television deal is not particularly lucrative.
“But once you get into Europe, and the Champions League especially, you get part of the BT deal. They’ve done very poorly in Europe this year and that means they’ll also suffer in terms of win and draw bonuses, which are paid out by UEFA.
“They are heavily incentivised to make progress in Europe and therefore those payments won’t be made on A) the progression basis and B) the individual match basis.
“If we take a look at what happened to pay in 2017 when they did qualify for the group stages of the Champions League, the wage bill rose by 50%. That gives you an indication as to the benefits to the club.”
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