UEFA raises the solidarity fund and caps the amount that goes to the top five federations

Thursday, UEFA, the governing body of soccer in Europe, said it would limit the amount of money that goes to the top five federations and give more to teams that don’t play in men’s continental competitions.

As of last year, the UEFA Executive Committee agreed to a big increase in the share of solidarity given to clubs that don’t compete in UEFA’s men’s club competitions for the 2024–27 cycle. These clubs will now receive 7% of the projected €4.4bn in revenue, up from 4% now. “This amounts to €308mn, which is almost 80% more than the last cycle,” UEFA said in a statement after its Executive Committee met in Prague.

“A cap to the distribution to the top five federations (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France) has been confirmed, as they will receive €10m each,” UEFA said.

“This means that the remaining 50 associations will be able to get a total of €258 million in funds, up from €135 million now.” 70% of these funds will be given to clubs based on their place on the UEFA access list, and the other 30% will be based on how much money the top-earning club in each association gets. This is a new idea that is meant to make domestic leagues more competitive.

The European Clubs Associations (ECA) were happy with the result.

Nasser el-Khelaifi, chairman of ECA and president of Paris St. Germain, said in a statement, “ECA has worked with UEFA and European Leagues for many months to drive a significant increase in solidarity for non-participating clubs and a more equitable distribution system for participating clubs – for the new 2024–27 cycle, which will benefit clubs of all sizes across the football pyramid.”

UEFA said that the Executive Committee also agreed to a new plan for women’s football “for the period 2024–30.” More information would be released “in the coming weeks.”