Napoli to make at least €40 million from the Champions League

Napoli’s triumph over OGC Nice on Tuesday wasn’t just a huge emotional moment for Napoli — it was a huge payday for the club as well, guaranteeing themselves at least €40 million for playing in the group stage, with the possibility of getting more depending on how they perform.

Napoli are one of three Italian clubs raking in the cash from qualifying for the Champions League group stage, with Juventus bringing in €58.5 million and AS Roma getting €50 million. Napoli got the lowest part of the prize pot because of their third place finish in the league, but it’s still a healthy payout that will help them significantly during the last week of the transfer window.

The best part? That money is just the guarantee from making the group stage. There’s still more money to be gotten from winning matches — €1.5 million per win! — plus the obvious benefit of having more high-profile matches to sell tickets and merchandise for, plus new sponsorship opportunities, not to mention a higher profile for sponsorships.

Napoli should be set to make themselves quite a bit of money this season, and they can use that to their advantage in the form of a strong finish to the transfer market and a better overall squad. There’s some definite needs that have yet to be addressed this summer for various reasons, but the money is there now, and that’s what Napoli have been waiting on. It’s time to get the job done, because now the pressure is on in a big, big way.