There is a lot riding on tonight’s first leg with Servette at Ibrox for Rangers, and for once, for the first time in quite a while, we’re not even referring to the football side.
While the fans are eager, ourselves included, to see Rangers get this spluttering season started properly on the pitch, off it there’s money involved, and if Rangers do fall to the Swiss side, there will be no UCL parachute payment for landing in the Europa League.
It’s probably not been made too clear, but Rangers are 100% guaranteed European football this term, with group participation assured thanks to our work on the Scottish coefficient. The question is the group of what competition – Champions League, or Europa League?
But sadly, while Rangers do go straight into the UEL group stage even if Servette win this tie, we will receive no UCL parachute money for it.
There is of course the UEL group participation cash, which is €3.2M, but the £5M or so for getting to the play-off is the only money Rangers can directly win in qualifying this season.
But of course if we somehow pull off a miracle and win that one as well we get no money for it either, only for securing UCL group, which is around £15M+ pure prize money.
In a roundabout way what we’re saying is Rangers win no UCL prize money no matter what happens v Servette, and will only win the £5M if we get to the playoffs and lose them. Which would see us dumped into the Europa League as well.
But of course, we get the €3.2M from UEFA for being a UEL participant, which is pleasant.
So the idea route for Rangers to realistically pursue this season is to throw EVERYTHING into beating Servette, then likely (certainly) lose v PSV in the playoffs and get that £5M plus the €3.2M UEL participation cash, which earns us around £7.5M total give or take, plus anything we can earn in the group stage.
We have no chance in the group stage of the Champions League, let’s be realistic here. It’ll be the same massacre as last year.
The best thing Beale can do is throw everything he has into Servette and securing the playoff, after that the club is guaranteed some good money.
As for UCL group – yes it’ll give us about £15M+, but are the slaughterings in the matches going to be worth it?
UEL is our level these days, might as well own up to that.