Liverpool’s total prize money for the 2022-23 Champions League - as four transfer fees recouped

Liverpool’s 2022-23 Champions League campaign came to an end as they suffered their latest loss to Real Madrid.

The Reds exited the competition at the hands of the Spanish giants for a fourth time in six seasons on Wednesday evening. Jurgen Klopp’s side fell to a 6-2 aggregate defeat in the last 16 - with the damage being done when succumbing to a sobering 5-2 loss in the first leg at Anfield.

Liverpool scarcely threatened Madrid in the return clash at the Santiago Bernabeu before Karim Benzema’s late strike rounded off a disappointing 180 minutes for the Anfield outfit.

It means there will be no fourth Champions League final since 2018 for Kopites to enjoy. They’ll instead have to watch events in Istanbul - the location of Liverpool’s most iconic European evening in 2005 - from home.

The full focus for Klopp is now to ensure the Reds yield a top-four finish in the Premier League and qualify for the Champions League next term. What comes with competing in Europe’s elite club competition is not only prestige but significant funds.

While Liverpool may have crashed out of this season’s competition in the first knockout round, they still banked a minimum total of around €67.7 million (£54.5 million).

Qualifying for the group stage alone netted the Reds €15.64 million. Then group-stage victories earn clubs €2.8 million each. Klopp’s men defeated Rangers and Ajax both home and away along with Napoli at Anfield - which adds up to €14 million. What’s more, the redistributed draws fund - pooled among the clubs playing in the group stage in amounts proportionate to their number of wins - delivered another €1.14 million. Reaching the last 16 then added an additional €9.6 million to the coffers.

Meanwhile, the UEFA co-efficient fund - calculated based on their performance in UEFA competitions over the past 10 years - handed Liverpool a windfall of circa €27.3 million. Those sums are not considering the redistributed market pool of €300 million which will augment the kitty along with match-day revenue.

To put it into context, four Liverpool transfer fees this season have been covered. Cody Gakpo cost an additional £37 million in January, while fees of £7.7 million and £6.5 million were paid for Fabio Carvalho and Calvin Ramsay to Fulham and Aberdeen respectively. Liverpool also handed over around £4 million for the loan services of Arthur Melo from Juventus for the season.

Not that the Reds need reminding but from a financial perspective, failing to qualify for the world’s most lucrative tournament will have its ramifications.